


as lasting as a summer breeze

by chankgyunie



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: A little bit of angst, Childhood Friends to Strangers, Crushes, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Oral Sex, Slice of Life, Smut, Strangers to Friends, a lot of fluff, idiots fallin in love, like a lot, that kind of small town cute summer fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:07:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 72,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24122605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chankgyunie/pseuds/chankgyunie
Summary: A burnout Mingyu finds himself traveling back to the small town where he grew up. There, he reecounters Wonwoo, his childhood best friend whom he had lost contact with. As Mingyu explores Sokdong, this familiar town where old meets new, he not only comes upon a sense of tranquility, but tumbles into a summer daydream, slowly rekindling old flames from the past.
Relationships: Boo Seungkwan/Chwe Hansol | Vernon, Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Yoon Jeonghan, Jeon Wonwoo/Kim Mingyu, Wen Jun Hui | Jun/Xu Ming Hao | The8
Comments: 89
Kudos: 247





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hi guys!! so, first of all, i'd like to thank my dearest friend and beta reader Juliana who helped me plot this fic and figure out every little detail. we came up with the idea after the seventeen appearance on the may issue of the cosmopolitan magazine and those amazing minwon photos (!!!). her talented self also surprised me with this amazing [playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7oJ61A5oICB6WqBtEF8Qfl?si=DeDA2DARTMWxko8p5nDlnw) that i think totally embodies this fic and the summer-y, light vibe that we're trying to deliver. so, if you'd like, you could give it a listen while you read.
> 
> quick disclaimer: all of this story is fictional and not meant to imply anything about mingyu's or wonwoo's actual relationships, family members or friends. we have some special appearances of artists from other fandoms as well as made-up characters along the fic.
> 
> anyway, i really hope you enjoy this little universe we created and, please, if you do, leave me some comments! have a good read :)

“Okay, so after today’s schedule you have to do another couple of photos for GQ’s last photoshoot. They apologized, but they said they need to take a few more pictures, since those didn’t turn out as good as they liked. You know them, they’re perfectionists.” Jihoon told Mingyu, while looking at the notes in his phone. “There’s also that perfume commercial tomorrow morning. I know you’ll leave GQ’s photoshoot quite late, since I had to squeeze them in the little time you had, but just try to go straight to bed when you get home, so you won’t wake up with dark circles tomorrow.”

“Tell me about it, I already have to deal with a lot of those.” Minghao commented, as he began applying foundation on Mingyu’s skin. “What’s going on with you lately? Are you getting any sleep at all?”

There was a few seconds of silence and no answer coming from the model.

“Mingyu?” Jihoon called his attention, waving his hand in front of his face.

“Huh?” Mingyu snapped out of his thoughts and looked from the mirror to Jihoon. “What is it?”

“Did you even listen to anything I said?” Jihoon asked him.

“Uhm… Yeah.” He lied, scratching the back of his neck. “Something about my tight schedule. The usual. Just email them to me and I’ll read it later.”

“Mingyu…” Minghao sighed, putting down his brush and leaning against the dressing room table so he could get a better look at his friend. “What’s going on with you lately?”

“What? Nothing, I’m fine.” He dismissed it.

“C’mon, don’t bullshit me.” Minghao asked him, being serious. “You’ve been so out of it lately, we can both notice it. We’re your friends, Mingyu, we can tell when something’s bothering you.”

“But that’s the thing! Nothing’s actually bothering me.” Mingyu sighed loudly, running his hand through his hair. Minghao hadn’t fixed it yet, so he was safe to touch it. “I’m just not… Feeling it anymore, you know? I’m really, really tired and I can’t find joy in any of the jobs I take anymore. And it’s so goddamn frustrating, you have no idea.”

Jihoon looked at him, eyebrows furrowed, a puzzled look on his face.

“I… Don’t know what to say, Mingyu.”

“And I don’t expect you to understand, Jihoon, that’s fine.” He told him. “It’s just this empty feeling, like I’m living an endless rut. And it’s awful because I also feel like I can’t complain about it, since a lot of people wished they could be in my place and I should be thankful that I can support myself financially. I mean, sure, finally I’ve reached a point in which I’m stable and I should be glad for that, I know.”

Another moment of silence followed.

“I’m sorry, you guys have nothing to do with this. But you asked me what was wrong and I just had to let it out of my chest.” He took a deep breath and looked up at Minghao, who had a worried expression on his face, like he wished he could help him somehow. “It’s okay, I’ll… Figure something out. Don’t worry about it.”

“Are you okay to continue with today’s schedule?” Jihoon asked him. “If you want, I can ask them to cancel it. It’s not that much of an important ad anyway…”

“No, it’s okay. I’m… I’m fine.” Mingyu assured him, looking into Jihoon’s eyes so he could see Mingyu was being serious. He might’ve been feeling like crap, but something he knew how to do was to be professional and he would never cancel a job last minute.

Jihoon nodded, feeling more reassured.

“I got your mail this morning, by the way.” He took a couple of envelopes from his black bag and handed them to Mingyu. “I’ll go talk to the photographer now, okay? If you need me, just yell.”

“Alright.” Mingyu answered, while looking down at the envelopes. He felt Minghao turn his chin up just a bit so he could get back to his make-up. The first envelope, however, caught his attention and he leaned down even more to look at it closely.

“Mingyu, seriously.” Minghao complained at him, but he didn’t even hear it, opening the elegant white envelope with ‘for the best cousin ever’ written with a neat handwriting on the back. As he read what was inside, his eyes widened.

“What is it?” Minghao was curious.

“My cousin Joshua.” He answered whilst still looking at the envelope. “He’s getting married to his high-school sweetheart in two months and I’m invited.”

It had been such a long time since he last talked to Joshua that he didn’t even know he was engaged. Mingyu suddenly felt really guilty about that. He could’ve reached out more.

“Well, then…?” Minghao asked him, not seeing what the problem was.

“It’s gonna be at Sokdong, my hometown.” Mingyu looked up at him, a dazed look on his face. “I haven’t been there in... ten years.”

“Well, maybe now’s the time.”

“I don’t know…” Mingyu shrugged. “I would have to stay with my dad and his family and I know he wouldn’t mind, but I wouldn’t want to be a burden to his wife. Plus, I know that as soon as I get there, I’ll be the talk of the town. The boy who abandoned them and made it in the big city. I don’t know if I’m ready for all of that.”

“Mingyu, honestly, I think you’re just creating problems in your head.” Minghao told him as he thoroughly applied mousse to his wet hair. “You’ve always said your stepmother is the sweetest, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind having you there. And are you that full of yourself that you think you’ll be the only thing people will talk about? People have lives, Mingyu.” Minghao raised his eyebrows at him, clearly joking, but deep down speaking some truth.

“Okay, I’m serious, listen to me.” He took Mingyu’s hands in his and looked into his eyes. “You just complained to us about how tired you are from all of the routine, didn’t you? Maybe this wedding is a chance for you to get out of that for a bit. You could even stay there for a while, I don’t know, a month? Two?”

“What?” Mingyu chuckled, like Minghao was insane. “Are you kidding?”

“Mingyu, you know the thing about not having an office job is that you don’t get fixed payment, but you also don’t get any rest. Tell me, when was the last time you went on a vacation?”

“I…” Mingyu frowned, trying hard to think of an answer. He could only remember the one-week european trip he took with his ex-boyfriend three years before. The only rest he took was at the end of the year holidays.

“Exactly.” Minghao took his silence as an answer. “No one can stay mentally healthy with the amount of work you’re putting yourself through. You’re burnout.”

Mingyu thought about it. The positive aspects of his job as a model was that there were always launch events and parties that he would be invited to, get a few drinks and hook up with some random people, but even that had become a nuisance for him. So, maybe Minghao was right. Maybe he needed to step back to invest in another point of view in life.

“You’re right, but… Wow. Two months without work? Sounds so freaking scary.” He murmured under his breath.

“Don’t even worry about money, Mingyu. You have savings that could last you for around a year and you know that.” Minghao pointed out, going back to fixing Mingyu’s hair.

“Okay, so… I’ll need to talk with Jihoon to not book me for future schedules and I’ll also need to talk to my mom, ‘cause I don’t think she’ll want to go with me, since Joshua’s my cousin from my dad’s side and…” Mingyu began listing things he needed to do in his head, counting them on his fingers. Minghao rolled his eyes and simply took the boy’s iPad and gave it to him to take notes.

“Okay, everyone’s just waiting for you, Mingyu.” Jihoon opened the door to the dressing room to let them know. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, Mingyu’s just going to quit his job for a few months.”

“He— What?!”

☼

“Are you sure you got everything?” Jihoon asked him for the thousandth time as Mingyu got ready to get on the train with his two suitcases and a backpack. He knew it was a lot and he probably wouldn’t even need to use all of the stuff he was bringing with him, but he couldn’t help himself.

“Of course he got everything, I helped him pack.” Minghao told him, happy with himself. He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his back against his boyfriend, Jun, who held him by the waist. “Without my help, he’d be back here in two days saying he forgot his toothbrush or something like that.”

“What would I do without you?” Mingyu sighed, smiling at him.

“I don’t know, but I’m tired of your face already, this vacation of yours will do me some good.” He joked.

Mingyu rolled his eyes and pulled Minghao into a tight hug.

“I’m gonna miss you.” He murmured against his friend’s long hair. 

Mingyu had met Minghao on his first job as a model, when the other worked for a magazine. They hit it off very quickly and Minghao saw enough potential in Mingyu that he had taken Mingyu under his wing as one of his clients early on in his career as a model. He worked as Mingyu’s own hair stylist and make-up artist even when his friend could barely afford his bills on his own and joked with Mingyu that one day, when he had enough money as a model, he would repay him with interest. 

Mingyu did pay him with interest as soon as he got his first big gig a couple years later — even with Minghao vehemently denying it — and they just kept hyping each other as much as possible in their careers and social life. Minghao had been by Mingyu’s side through thick and thin: parties, events and many sad nights over Mingyu’s past relationships. Mingyu would be away for just two months, but ever since he met Minghao, he hadn’t been away from him for more than two weeks.

“I’ll miss you too, dummy.” Minghao hugged him back. “But there’ll be no need for this, since you’ll text me everyday telling me all about that cute town of yours, right?”

“Right.” Mingyu giggled and then turned to Jihoon, who kept a straight face, like he wasn’t sad to be saying goodbye to his roommate and best friend for the following two months. However, Mingyu knew how Jihoon was and that, deep down, he would really miss him.

“So what am I supposed to do when you’re not here? I’m your agent.” Jihoon asked.

“Rest as well? You need more of a break than me, hyung.” Mingyu pulled the small man into his arms for a tight hug even though the other complained about it.

“Trust me, I will make sure that he takes some proper rest.” Minghao promised Mingyu. “I’ll take him to some parties and he’ll even get laid, you’ll see.”

Jihoon blushed from head to toe.

“I don’t need your help to get laid, okay?” He rolled his eyes.

Soon, it was time for Mingyu to leave and he hugged Jun and the others for one last time before getting on the train. It was a four-hour trip to his hometown and Mingyu hadn’t realized how tired he was, closing his eyes and quickly falling asleep as soon as he sat on his seat.

He woke up when the train was nearing the town and was hit by an evident contrast between the view of the tall buildings and traffic cacophony of Seoul a few hours before and the trees and sunset over the ocean he was seeing now.

Mingyu left the train so focused on breathing in the clean air of the seaside town that he didn’t even realize the people calling out for him.

“Oppa!” He suddenly felt someone running into his legs and looked down to see his five-year old little sister hugging him tight. A huge smile plastered his face as he let go of his suitcases to kneel down and hug her properly.

“Hayoung!” He hugged her tight, then backed away so he could hold her face and see how she looked. The last time he had seen his little sister in person was when she was only two years old and his dad had visited him for a couple of days. “Look at you! Oh my god, you look so grown-up! How old are you? Ten?” He joked.

The little girl laughed, blushing a little on her chubby cheeks. She wore a cute headband with a pink bow on it and a white dress with pink flowers all over it.

“I’m five!”

“So, not a baby anymore, huh?” Mingyu asked her, trying not to laugh as she shook her head, proud of herself.

“Then, you need to behave nicely as a proper kid, don’t you Hayoung?” Minjung, Mingyu’s stepmother and Hayoung’s mother approached them, pulling Mingyu in for a hug. “I hope she’ll behave better now that you’re here. We’re all so happy you’re back, Mingyu! She couldn’t stop talking about it all week.” She stepped away, but leaned in once again to whisper in his ear. “Your father will probably tell you that I’m lying, but he also couldn’t stop talking about it.”

“Son!” His father, Sangwoo, approached him with open arms and embraced Mingyu, patting him on the back. “Ah, it’s been so long!”

“I hope that I’m not being a burden to you or anything.” Mingyu began saying as soon as he got out of his father’s embrace. “I’ll try to help with what I can in the house and…”

“Are you kidding me, Mingyu? You’re not a burden at all!” Mingjun exclaimed, affectionately petting him on his head. “We already set up the spare bedroom in the house for you, it’s all good. These will be a great couple of months, trust me.”

Mingyu smiled really big at the warm welcome he was getting. He really didn’t see this coming. Even though he and his father had always had a good relationship, even after his parents got divorced, he imagined they would have some kind of resentment towards him, since Mingyu was always so caught up with work and didn’t pay much attention to them. He regretted not coming to visit them more often, not even when his little sister was born. In his mind, Mingyu thought that catching up with them once a month through Facetime or social media was enough, but now he could clearly see it wasn’t.

His dad hurried to get his suitcases from him and didn’t even let him help carry them to the car.

“Oh, Mingyu, you have no idea how much the town has changed these years you’ve been away.” His dad commented to him as soon as he got in the car, sitting on the backseat beside Hayoung, due to much of his little sister’s insistence. “It didn’t grow much, we’re still a small town where everyone knows each other. But the mayor did a lot of renovations, so everything’s looking a bit more modern and fresh now, see?”

As he drove, his dad pointed at the town’s small buildings and houses that surrounded the main park. It was all very colorful, a beautiful sight to look at. Fresh painted green, blue and yellow houses, the city hall, the fountain in the middle of the park where a few kids played at on those hot summer days. Everything looked like a scene directly from a movie and, out of a sudden, Mingyu was really glad Minghao convinced him to spend his vacation there. He could feel all the stress and chaos of the big city already leaving him.

“In terms of mindset as well, I believe this town can be welcoming to all kinds of people… Right, Sangwoo?” His stepmother commented, eyeing her husband to back her up with something. Mingyu had no idea what she was talking about, though.

“Honey…” Sangwoo reprimanded her in a whisper, so Mingyu couldn’t hear them. But, out of curiosity, Mingyu kept looking at them, trying to figure out what the hell they were talking about. “We agreed we wouldn’t bring it up, it could be awkward for him.”

“What could be awkward for me?” Mingyu asked them out loud, causing his dad to widen his eyes and look back to the road.

“Your dad’s overreacting, Mingyu.” Mingjun dismissed it, turning to look back at her stepson. “I was just talking about how the town’s been very welcoming towards the LGBTQ community and I think that you’ll feel very comfortable with that.”

“Oh.” Mingyu smiled softly, finally getting what was happening. “Right. That’s something very positive, indeed. And it wouldn’t make me feel awkward, dad.” He turned to his father, who was a bit embarrassed to be talking about his son’s sexuality. Mingyu found it cute, though. He was glad that his parents had always been very supportive of him. “I’m openly gay and proud of that.”

“That’s what I’m talking about.” Mingjun raised her palm for him to high-five her and he did so, finding it very funny. “The local bar, just around the corner of the street we live in, holds an LGBTQ event every Thursday. You should stop by sometime, I’m sure they’ll welcome you with open arms. The boys are the sweetest.”

“Yes, Mingyu, I hope you don’t stay home the entire day while you’re here, you should go out and make some friends. Joshua can introduce you to them.” His dad commented, changing the subject as he saw something across the street. “Oh! There’s the Jeon’s restaurant, Mingyu! It belongs to Wonwoo’s family, do you remember him? You two used to be the best of friends when you were kids.”

“Jeon Wonwoo? Yeah. How could I forget him?” Mingyu sighed while looking out the window at the dark wooden restaurant with some big windows that gave him a view of the well-lit space. The restaurant contrasted itself as the sun set. “Is he still living here in town?”

“Wonwoo? Oh, the poor boy didn’t even have a choice.” Sangwoo told him. “His dad got sick around three years ago and he had to take over things at the restaurant, since he’s an only child. It’s the family business, after all.”

Mingyu looked back at the restaurant one more time before the traffic light went green and they drove past it. He wondered if Wonwoo was in there, working. The two of them used to be really close friends when they were kids and Mingyu had promised him they would always stay in touch, that he would call and send letters to Wonwoo every week. That never happened, though. Life drew them apart and Mingyu hadn’t talked to Wonwoo ever since he left town. He hated himself for it.

☼

“So, what do you know about the wedding?” Mingyu asked them at the dinner table, while putting ramen in his bowl. Mingjun had prepared a variety of dishes with everything he liked.

“Well, it’s the talk of the town, what everyone’s been waiting for.” She told Mingyu, while cutting a few pieces of pork for Hayoung. “Joshua and Dahyun have been dating for quite a while now, so it was just a matter of time. Basically, half the town is invited.”

“The ceremony will be held at the church and the party will be at the community salon right across the street. It has lots of space for a big party. They’ve been planning it for a year already.” His dad added.

“I can’t believe I didn’t even know Josh was engaged…” Mingyu commented, shaking his head while he stuffed his mouth with more ramen.

“Well, you’re very busy, son. Everyone knows that. It’s not your fault.” His dad shrugged. 

“Yeah, well, I should know better on how to sort out my priorities.” He murmured, looking down at his plate. Mingjun and Sangwoo just looked at each other, not knowing what to say. 

After changing subjects, the family finished dinner with more small talk here and there, spending some time together afterwards as well. His father announced bed time to a restless Hayoung, so Mingyu took advantage of the occasion (and his yawns) to wish everyone a good night and to go to his room and fall into a deep slumber for the remainder of the night.

The next morning, Mingyu woke up before his alarm and yet, he felt really well rested. It had been a long time since he had such a good night of sleep.

Laying down for a bit longer, Mingyu took the time to look around the room Mingjun had prepared for him. It wasn’t a small room, with a full size bed, a closet, a desk and a large mirror by the door. It had white walls, dark furniture and clean black sheets, neatly decorated with some blue paintings above the bed and even some framed pictures of Mingyu’s childhood on the shelf by the window. Mingyu got up and looked at the three pictures: one of him when he was 8 years old beside his mom and his dad after some swimming competition, a medal around his neck indicating he won; another one of him with his dad, Mingjun and little two-year old Hayoung when they went to visit him in the city; and the third one of ten-year old Mingyu with his arm around Wonwoo at the park, both of them smiling big to the camera.

Mingyu breathed heavily, looking around. He was dreading coming here and disturbing his dad’s routine, but they were already treating him like part of the family, making him feel right at home. He smiled remembering the night before, when he and Hayoung helped Mingjun with the dishes and then his little sister insisted on him being the one to read for her and put her to bed, so of course he did it. It was a family life he wasn’t used to having, since his life in Seoul consisted basically in work, parties, flings and messed up relationships. To have this kind of love, peace and quiet made him feel like he could get used to it.

He heard his door being opened and turned around to see Mingjun peeking inside.

“Oh! You’re up already?” She opened the door wider, showing what she held in her hands. “I just came to hang your suit for you. I ironed it.”

“You really didn’t have to do that, Mingjun. Thank you so much.” Mingyu smiled at her, taking a look at his neatly ironed suit. It was an expensive one that Minghao had somehow convinced him to buy and it actually fit him perfectly. He had already worn it at a few launch events, but decided that if everyone would already stare at him at the wedding, at least he’d wear his best suit for it. It was a burgundy color with details in black, over a black shirt which Mingyu decided to leave with one button open and no tie. Styling his hair up and fixing it with just enough hairspray, just like Minghao had taught him, Mingyu admitted he looked quite dashing. 

The wedding would be in the evening, so after having lunch with his family and playing with his sister for a while, Mingyu took a shower and started getting ready. He sprayed some perfume on himself before taking a mirror picture and sending it to Minghao. Not even five minutes later, he got a text back saying “I’m so proud :’)”, which made him believe he had done things right.

“Mingyu oppa! Let’s go!” He heard Hayoung call for him downstairs, so he quickly grabbed his phone and left his room.

“She’s in a rush because she’s gonna be the flower girl.” Mingjun explained to him.

“Oh really?” Mingyu looked at his little sister, who was wearing a beautiful white dress down to her ankles, silver flats, a flower crown on her head and a flower basket in her hands. “Then, you’re the prettiest flower girl I’ve ever seen.”

Hayoung smiled, a bit shy and played with the flowers in her basket.

“Well, you’re looking amazing as well, Mingyu. No wonder you’re a model.” Mingjun complimented him.

“He got it from his dad.” Sangwoo winked at his wife, which got him a playful nudge on the shoulder. “Everyone ready, right? Let’s go, then.”

They arrived at the local church in less than ten minutes, since one could probably go around the entire town in less than an hour. The place was already filled with people, given it was almost time the ceremony started. There were people standing outside the church, already inside saving their seats on the chairs, standing by the altar, everywhere. The church wasn’t small, however, so it could fit all of them perfectly.

Mingyu’s family walked inside the church at a slow pace, since his dad had to stop and talk to many people. Sangwoo was fairly well-known in town, being the owner of the local grocery store, which Mingyu’s grandfather passed down to him before he died. It was a family business which his dad never forced on Mingyu to take over in the future and, for that, he was thankful.

As soon as they walked inside the church, Mingyu could feel piercing eyes on him, people whispering to each other as their gaze fixated on Mingyu. Some of them he recognized from his childhood, like his neighbors or the old couple who owned the flower shop, but some of them he had no idea who they were.

“They’re all staring at me.” He whispered to his stepmother, as they waited for his dad to talk to some other guy by the church door. He felt like he had a spotlight on him. Mingyu wasn’t an introverted person, he posed under spotlights for a living, but it was a different feeling when he could see everyone physically gossiping about him and had no idea what they were talking about.

“Don’t worry, dear, they’re just curious.” Mingjun assured him, squeezing his shoulder gently. “You’ve been away for too long, they’re just surprised.”

Mingyu nodded. Through all of the burning looks on him, though, one specially caught his attention. He turned to look in the direction of the one who was staring at him, leaning on one of the left pillars of the church, and the guy immediately looked away. Mingyu, however, continued looking.

The man was wearing a black suit over a neat white shirt and a black bow tie around his collar. He had thin round glasses on his face, beautiful black hair that looked really soft to the touch. Mingyu watched as he started to talk with someone beside him and then it hit him who he was looking at, the puzzle pieces connecting, that face he could never forget. He finally realized. That was none other than Wonwoo, his childhood best friend.

“Oh! There is Joshua, we should go talk to him.” Mingyu snapped out of it when his dad began motioning him to the altar to talk to his cousin.

“Oh my god if it isn’t the model, the legend himself: Kim Mingyu!” Joshua exclaimed as soon as he saw Mingyu approaching him. He pulled his cousin into a tight hug.

“Josh! I’ve missed you, man.”

“Look at you! All stylish and elegant!” Joshua backed away to stare him up and down, a big smile on his face. “I can’t believe it took me getting married to bring you back here!”

“I still can’t believe you’re getting married, Josh. How crazy is that?!”

“Love, man. That’s all it takes.” Joshua shrugged, still smiling at him, his eyes sparkling as soon as he talked about his fiancée.

They didn’t have much time to catch up, since soon it was announced that the bride had arrived and they began to play the classical wedding march. Mingyu sat down with his family on a bench right at the front next to Joshua’s mom, who was Mingyu’s aunt, his dad and siblings. The ceremony was beautiful and went smoothly, lasting around an hour. Then, all of the guests were lining up on the stairs and throwing rice at the newlyweds who passed between them. Everyone, then, made their way to the salon just across the street. 

The place was beautifully decorated in peach and white, matching the colors on Dahyun’s bouquet, and the tables were made of spruce wood, all of the flowers and light colors giving a country feeling to the big space. On the small stage, a band played some songs while the couple took a few pictures. Mingyu sat with his family next to the table of the bride and groom, but soon had to get up to take some pictures as well, since he was a part of Joshua’s family.

After pictures, dinner was served and Mingyu hadn’t even finished eating before his sister called him to go walk with her so she could introduce her big brother to her group of friends. Mingyu quickly swallowed his last piece of salmon before getting up, under the judging eyes of Mingjun. He could never say no to his sister. Hayoung proudly introduced him to her friends and even some people who already knew who he was, but pretended they didn’t for the sake of the child. After half an hour of going around with his sister, Joshua approached the two of them.

“Hey, Hayoung, can I steal your brother for a second?” He leaned down to ask her, speaking softly. The little girl put her hand on her chin, thinking hard. “You see, I want to introduce him to my friends as well.”

Hayoung cutely narrowed her eyes at him, but then nodded. They left her to play with her friends while Mingyu’s parents watched her from afar and Mingyu followed Joshua.

“Okay, so since you’ll be staying here for a while, I’d like you to meet my friends.” He told Mingyu, before approaching the table where eight guys talked loudly to each other. “Hey, everyone! As you all probably already know, this is Kim Mingyu, my cousin who lives in Seoul.”

“I think that being a successful model is a much better position than being your cousin, Josh, just FYI.” The boy with light pink hair commented, causing a few of them to muffle some laughs.

Joshua just rolled his eyes, like he was used to it, and began introducing the guys.

“That son of a bitch over there is Jeonghan.” He pointed at them as he went along and the boys waved at Mingyu. “Then, you have Seungcheol, his boyfriend, Soonyoung, Seungkwan, Hansol, Seokmin, his younger brother Chan, and lastly, Wonwoo, who’s actually providing for the buffet tonight. You remember Wonwoo, right? You two used to be inseparable when you were kids.”

“I… Remember, yeah.” Mingyu nodded at Wonwoo, who was sitting kind of awkwardly, trying to avoid Mingyu’s eyes. He nodded back and drove his attention back to swirling the straw inside his glass. Joshua’s words ‘used to be inseparable’ somehow fixated on Mingyu’s mind.

“Anyway, we’re all queer.” Seokmin pointed out, catching Mingyu’s attention back to the group.

“Really?” Mingyu widened his eyes, Joshua’s friends must’ve been the ones his dad wanted him to meet, then.

“Well…” Seokmin sighed under Joshua’s and Soonyoung’s stares. “All, except for the straight quota of these two. And my little brother who still hasn't figured himself out.” With that, he earned a smack on the back of his head by Chan. “But, they wish they were queer.”

“Actually, that’s very good to know, ‘cause at least I feel a bit more comfortable, being gay and all…” Mingyu revealed, holding in his laughter at the gasps that some of them let out and a muttered “oh, please, we been knew, look at that suit” from Hansol. In the corner of his eye, he saw Wonwoo raise his eyebrows in a surprised expression.

“Handsome and gay?” He heard Seungkwan whisper to Seungcheol, who simply laughed at his friend.

“Oh, to be a gay young model living a successful life in Seoul…” Jeonghan leaned his head on his chin, dreaming out loud.

“Well, I’ll go back to my bride and leave you with them.” Joshua told Mingyu, giving him an apologetic smile before backing away. “Try not to eat him alive, guys!”

“Come on, you need to tell us everything.” Seungkwan immediately pulled up a chair as soon as Joshua left and pushed Mingyu down.

“It’s really not the paradise you guys imagine it to be…” Mingyu admitted, not containing his smile at how excited they looked. “Of course, there are the fancy events and parties…”

“Well, that’s all I need to know.” Seokmin leaned back in his chair, already satisfied.

“Are there a bunch of hot people? I bet there are a bunch of hot people. Like, at every corner you turn.” Jeonghan asked him, intrigued.

“Well, yeah…” Mingyu chuckled.

“And do you all hook up with each other like a reality show?” Soonyoung added another question.

“I mean, I haven’t hooked up with all of them, just a few…” Mingyu smirked, not even faking it. Those, indeed, were the best part of his job.

“My god, what I would give to be in at least one of those parties…” Seokmin sighed, downing his cocktail glass. “I know everyone around here already.”

“But, there’s also the down part, at least in the fashion industry, which is not having a fixed salary, so you have to get job after job to get recognition first and then, when you realize, you’re overworking yourself.” Mingyu let it out, taking a glass of champagne the waiter offered him. Mingyu always talked more than he should, often reprimanding himself for opening his heart to strangers. However, somehow, these guys made him feel comfortable to open up, so he didn’t regret it. “That’s why I decided to take a couple of months off and get some rest. So, with Joshua’s wedding and all, I came back here.”

“After ten years.” Mingyu raised his gaze from his glass to look at Wonwoo, surprised that the muttered comment was coming from him, who hadn’t even said a word to Mingyu yet. Some of the guys seemed a bit surprised by Wonwoo’s input as well, looking at each other.

“Yeah, I…” Mingyu cleared his throat, feeling a bit awkward with Wonwoo’s gaze directed at him. “I wish I came sooner, but life got really messy and I could never find the time…”

“Well, at least you’re here now.” Seungcheol gave him a reassuring smile. “And you came at the right time of the year, too, since the summer festival is in two weeks and…” He got interrupted by the guys who spotted some waiters leaving the kitchen with new plates.

“Oh, they’re serving dessert already!” Soonyoung exclaimed, getting up with Seokmin, Seungkwan and a curious Hansol following close behind.

The evening passed by very quickly as he had fun at Joshua’s friends’ table. Mingyu only left them once when he went to the bathroom and was stopped by his father, on his way back, who wanted to introduce him to some of his friends, gloating at how successful his son had become in his modeling career and even showing them some pictures. After almost half an hour, Mingyu was able to excuse himself and get back to the boys’ table, but it was already 2 am, the cake had been cut, and everyone was dozing off or really drunk. Or both. Even Mingyu could feel himself a bit dizzy, the glasses of champagne finally kicking in.

“That’s it, I’ll make a speech!” Seokmin announced as soon as Mingyu got back to the table. He ignored Chan’s and Seungcheol’s pleads against it and got up anyway to take the microphone on the stage. Only Soonyoung, who was red all over his face due to the alcohol, backed him up.

“Uhm, silence, please. I need to say something.” He asked the crowd in a slurred speech, motioning for the band to turn down the music. “Okay, so you all know I’ve been friends with Joshua hyung for quite some time now, ever since we were kids and…” He stopped to look up and prevent his tears from falling.

Mingyu heard Wonwoo snicker beside him and turned to look at the boy, smiling at what Seokmin was doing. Mingyu thought it was the first time he saw Wonwoo smile that evening.

“Here we go…” He commented to a very much amused Jeonghan, who was watching it all intently like he was watching a movie. Beside the two, Hansol made sure to record it all in his phone.

“Joshua and Dahyun, you two are made for each other, you really are.” Seokmin pointed at the couple, sitting on the center table with awkward smiles on their faces, looking like they were waiting for the moment Seokmin embarrassed himself. “I’ve seen your love blossom from a shy Joshua afraid to ask Dahyun out and look where we are now! At your wedding!” He screamed the last part so loudly on the mic, that it even caused the sound equipment to let out a static noise, making everyone cover their ears until Seokmin stepped down from the stage, away from the speakers, but still with the microphone in his hands. “And look, you even brought Mingyu back in town! Who would’ve thought that would happen, huh?”

Mingyu immediately felt his entire face turn red as Seokmin pointed at him and everyone’s gaze turned his way. Seungcheol gave him a sympathetic pat on the back.

“Gosh, I’m so happy, I wish I could perform for you two tonight. But, I think I can do an acapella...”

Chan’s eyes widened at his brother’s words and he quickly shook Seungkwan’s arm.

“Hyung, please! You have to get him out of there before he embarrasses us even more!”

Seungkwan wasn’t very much sober either, but he still nodded intently and got up to help his friend. He wasn’t fast enough, though, to prevent Seokmin from singing the Ghost movie soundtrack.

“Oh, my love… My darling…” He sang through tears and sniffs, a few sobs in between his words. “I’ve hungered for… your touch…”

“Okay, everyone, please give it up for my friend, Lee Seokmin!” Seungkwan grabbed the microphone from him, the crowd giving him a weak round of applause as the band went back to playing their songs. Passing by their table, Seungkwan took a still crying Seokmin to the bathroom while the latter continued to say ‘Love is so beautiful, Seungkwanie, look at them! When am I gonna have that?’.

“And that’s just another day of embarrassment for this very chaotic group.” Hansol concluded to Mingyu as soon as he stopped recording the whole thing. “Welcome, Mingyu.”

Mingyu laughed and thanked him, clinking their glasses in cheers.

Worried about their two drunk friends barely being able to take care of each other in the bathroom, Seungcheol, Hansol and Jeonghan went there to help, which left only Mingyu, Wonwoo, Soonyoung and Chan at the table. The last two began talking to each other about a very specific anime they were watching and soon there was an awkward atmosphere between Mingyu and Wonwoo.

“What a fun party, huh.” Mingyu commented, trying to break the ice, but Wonwoo only nodded in agreement, playing with his straw once again. “So, how’s everything?”

“What do you mean?” He finally looked up at Mingyu and, damn, looking at Wonwoo closely like this, Mingyu realized how handsome he had become. The boy looked like a drama actor.

“Uhm…” He lost his train of thoughts for a second. “I mean, with your family and all. My dad told me you’re running things at the restaurant now, right?”

“They’re fine and yeah, I’m the manager and accountant of our business for a while now.” He gave him a quick and short answer, like he wasn’t in the mood for talking. But, Mingyu wasn’t one to give up. Come on, the two of them were best friends once, for fuck’s sake.

“Life is weird, isn’t it? Who would’ve thought, back then, that we’d drift apart like this and now we meet again after ten years?! Remember…”

“I’m sorry, I need to go check something with the buffet.” Wonwoo quickly interrupted him and walked up to the kitchen, leaving Mingyu a little bit surprised. Fortunately, the other two at the table were too immersed in their conversation to witness how Mingyu had been left hanging like that.

There wasn’t much time for him to get upset about Wonwoo not wanting to talk to him, though, since the others got back from the bathroom and then chaos installed once again as Seokmin tried to convince them he was sober enough for another drink and Hansol tried to keep Seungkwan from sleeping on the table. Eventually, Seungcheol suggested they should all go home already, seeing that most of the guests were already leaving, even Mingyu’s parents had left with a sleeping Hayoung in their arms right before Seokmin’s speech. They had told Mingyu he shouldn’t worry about the time he got back home, since he had his own key, but Mingyu agreed with Seungcheol that they were pretty hammered already and didn’t want to cause Joshua any more trouble in front of his remaining guests and become even more of a town gossip than they already were.

“But hey, tomorrow’s saturday and we could still hang out.” Jeonghan suggested, helping his boyfriend hold a very drunk and sleepy Seokmin. Chan stood by the side with his arms crossed over his chest, wanting nothing to do with his brother. “We could show you some places we like to go in town. What do you say?”

“I love that idea.” Mingyu told them. It was amazing not having to think if he had any free time between his tight schedule. He was on vacation and still couldn’t believe he had nothing planned to do. Looking around the group, as they said their goodbyes to Joshua and his bride near the entrance, Mingyu frowned. “But, what about Wonwoo? Where is he? Will he come too?”

“Oh, don’t worry about him, he’s in the kitchen sorting the leftovers from the buffet with my mom and things like that.” Joshua explained to him. “We’ll let him know about tomorrow.”

Mingyu nodded and said their goodbyes to Chan, Seokmin, Soonyoung, Seungcheol and Jeonghan, who were going the opposite way and walked alongside Hansol and Seungkwan, since they both lived nearby his house. 

“You know, I really like you, Mingyu.” Seungkwan told him with a slurred speech out of nowhere. Hansol held him close so he wouldn’t trip and fall. “I think you’ll be a good addition to our group.”

Though he was drunk, Mingyu smiled widely at the approval. He had only met those guys a few hours before and could already feel like he fit in. Like he hadn’t ever left his town at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, what did you guys think? i have a lot of things planned for these two on the way and many funny little scenes with the other members. i already have a couple of chapters written, so it won't take too long for me to update. hope you stay with me!  
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/chankgyunie)


	2. Chapter 2

Mingyu woke up startled by a heavy thud beside him in bed, causing him to open his eyes wide, his heart thumping in his chest.

“Gyu oppa! Come on! Wake up!” Hayoung jumped excitedly on the mattress and over Mingyu, hugging him tight. She was five, but she could be very strong without even realizing. “It’s late! Mommy said it’s eleven, come on!”

“What?!” Mingyu immediately sat up, checking the clock on his nightstand to confirm. Indeed, he had overslept. He usually would stay in bed until 10 am back at his apartment in Seoul, not minding oversleeping like this if he didn’t have any schedule. However, he wasn’t home and he should’ve helped Mingjun with breakfast and any other necessary morning chore.

Promptly getting up, he quickly washed his face and brushed his teeth in the bathroom while Hayoung patiently waited for him outside, took his sister on his back and ran downstairs, holding her by her arms over his shoulders like she was flying.

Hearing Hayoung’s loud screams and giggles, Mingjun stood in the living room with her arms crossed over her chest.

“Didn’t I tell you to let your brother sleep?” She reprimanded her daughter, but the little one didn’t pay any attention, having too much fun with how Mingyu abruptly hunched down with her on his back, making her feel like she was falling. “I’m sorry she woke you up, Mingyu.”

“Don’t worry, it’s no bother at all.” He panted while putting his sister down, tired from all the bouncing and skipping. “It’s already late too, I shouldn’t have overslept.”

“Of course you should’ve, you arrived very late last night, didn’t you? We didn’t even see you get home.” She told him while Mingyu followed her to the kitchen, Hayoung right behind, not leaving her brother. “Did you have fun with the boys?”

Mingyu grabbed an orange juice carton and an apple from the fridge and caught himself smiling remembering all the crazy acts and amusing talks at Joshua’s wedding party. It was like he fit right in and the conversations would just flow. He couldn’t wait to get to know them better.

“I did, yeah. They even invited me to hang out later today, so I’ll probably come back home late again, if that’s okay.” He asked her permission.

“Of course it is! This is your home too, Mingyu, so feel free to come and go as much as you like.” Mingjun told him, squeezing his upper arm tenderly. “And I’m so glad you’re getting closer to the boys, they’re really funny, we all love them.”

Mingyu nodded and leaned on the kitchen island as he finished eating his apple, poking his sister’s chubby cheek, who was sitting on a stool looking bored.

“Mingyu oppa, can you play tea with me?”

“Actually, pumpkin, I was thinking of cooking lunch today. Is that okay with you, Mingjun?” He turned to his stepmother who was about to put on an apron. She raised her eyebrows at him, surprised. “I’m used to cooking a lot in my apartment and I actually enjoy it, so I was thinking of doing some braised short ribs, which is one of my favorite dishes. You know, I may or may not have spotted some ribs on the fridge yesterday and thought I could treat everyone.”

“Oh, of course! Wow, I didn’t know you cooked, Mingyu. I’m very excited to try it.” She smiled while sitting on the kitchen island to watch and assist with whatever Mingyu needed.

“Maybe you could help me, Hayoung. What do you think?” Mingyu asked his sister. The five-year-old pouted as she mulled it over and finally nodded, jumping on the floor and putting on her own special tiny apron.

Being a grocery store owner had its perks, since their refrigerator was always full and Mingyu had all of the ingredients he needed for the dish. His cooking was never fast, he liked to take his sweet time with it and that was something his mom usually complained with him about, but Hayoung seemed to enjoy every bit of it, with Mingyu explaining to her every step he was taking and asking her to grab him the tools he needed – those that were safe for her to take and help out with.

In the end, his braised short ribs dish ended up as perfect as he would’ve hoped for and they were setting up the table with other simple side dishes when his dad got home from work to have lunch with the family. They all complimented his food and Mingyu promised Mingjun he would help her with the cooking more often.

After doing the dishes, Hayoung asked Mingyu if he could watch Frozen 2 with her, but fortunately, before he could answer anything, Mingjun told her daughter she had school activities to do. Mingyu didn’t like saying ‘no’ to his sister, but he was really feeling like getting out on his own and taking a stroll around the town, seeing how things changed in the years he’d been away. So, he took a shower, got into some comfortable clothes and went out.

The first place Mingyu went to was the park, a few blocks from his house, making sure to nod to every familiar face he encountered on the way. Sitting down on a bench under a huge tree, he almost felt like an old man as he watched the kids have fun around the playground, pushing each other on the swing. He reminisced about the days in which he and Wonwoo would race to the park after school and climb on trees, splash water (and mud) at each other in the shallow lake at the center, play with Pokémon cards on the ground under the shades or pretend they were renowned soccer players. They used to play with Wonwoo’s football, which he carried around everywhere for a long time, until their parents yelled at them to go home for dinner and do their homework. They’d laugh and would even be grounded for not doing as they were told, but it was all worth it.

He and Wonwoo had been best friends as far back as he could remember. Their families also knew each other, since the Kim’s grocery store was one of the Jeon's restaurant’s suppliers. Their moms even got quite close to each other, so their families would frequently visit one another for barbecue and the two boys would stay in their own little world at the corner, playing and sharing inside jokes. Other than that, even though they didn’t attend the same class (since Wonwoo was a year older), they would still glue to each other and spend time together at every recess.

It wasn’t all fun and games, though. They had arguments like every friend does, like that time when they argued because Mingyu really insisted on Wonwoo going to the school trip for the water park when they were twelve and thirteen and Wonwoo didn’t want to, since he was more of an introvert and didn’t like the stupid jokes and pranks some boys played at school. Sometimes Wonwoo wouldn’t lend Mingyu one of his toys or Mingyu would feel jealous of some of Wonwoo’s friends and get possessively mean to everyone around him. 

Almost curling up in shame with the memory, Mingyu recalled that one occasion in which he thought Wonwoo had torn a page of his favorite gaming magazine and it just exploded into pure chaos – accusations and tantrums thrown all around, and the mess was only solved because their moms figured out that it had been an accident caused by the neighbor’s dog at that time. 

They ended up having huge arguments over many things, but as always, they couldn’t stay away from each other for long and they probably weren’t strong enough to hold their pride. If their parents didn’t force them to reconcile beforehand, they would apologize to each other not long after by appearing on the other’s doorstep with a videogame to play together as if nothing had happened. Hours of snacking and playing would make them forget whatever it was that they were fighting about earlier. It was that simple for them. God, Mingyu really missed the simplicity of childhood.

All of a sudden, there were some cheerful high-pitched screams that woke Mingyu up from his trance. It came from the other side of the park – some young girls leaving a short building while proudly holding lollipops up above their heads. Looking over at the colorful store across the street, Mingyu immediately chuckled to himself and got up to visit it. 

The little bell above the door to Candy Cane, the sweets store that he and Wonwoo visited everyday on their way back home from school, jingled as he went inside. The store had only one customer, a teenage girl, browsing through the array of candies on the shelves.

“Mingyu!” He heard the familiar delicate voice from Eunkyung, the old lady that owned the store ever since he was a kid. She quickly made her way around the counter and raised her arms to embrace Mingyu. Eunkyung was so short that Mingyu had to really lean over so she could properly hug him. “I heard you were back in town, but I wasn’t able to attend the wedding, so I didn’t get to see you. Oh my god, look at you!” She stepped back so she could get a proper look at him, still holding tight onto his hands. Her eyes were thin lines with how big she smiled, deep wrinkles around her mouth. She definitely looked older than when Mingyu lived in town, but she was just as sweet as he remembered her. “You look so handsome. It feels like yesterday since I had to keep an eye on you and Wonwoo to see if you wouldn’t steal some candy or break anything.”

“Oh god, I’m really sorry about that.” Mingyu laughed, embarrassed that they used to cause so much trouble at her store.

“But, I wouldn’t have it any other way. You two were my favorite customers! Kept me from bankruptcy with the amount of candy you bought, that’s for sure.” She joked. “Oh! Do you remember that green tea I used to offer you? I just brew one right now, come on, I’ll give you a cup.”

Mingyu let himself be led to the counter while Eunkyung went to the back to grab a kettle and a cup for him. He bowed respectfully as he took the cup and lightly blew on it before he took a sip. The taste immediately brought him back ten years before.

“Good, right?” She looked at him, waiting for his reaction. He nodded vehemently.

While he drank his tea and Eunkyung helped the other customer as she was ready to pay, Mingyu looked around the shelves, recognizing many candies from his childhood that he was eager to taste again. As soon as he finished his cup, he grabbed a bag and filled it with all types of chocolates and sweets he could find. He wasn’t going to be working for two months, so there was no need to keep a stricter diet, he could eat whatever he wanted. 

A red and green package caught his attention and Mingyu let out a little gasp as he took the candy in his hand. It was his and Wonwoo’s favorite when they were kids: gummy bears. Those were always included with other snacks whenever they played video games or went to the movies together. They were obsessed with it, so Mingyu didn’t even think twice when he grabbed three bags of those and finally went to check out the stuff he bought.

While leaving the store with his bag in his hand, Mingyu felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He stopped on the sidewalk to pick it up, smiling at the “mullet guy” nickname displayed on the screen.

“What’s up?”

“What’s up?! You don’t talk to me properly ever since you arrived there, you piece of shit.” He laughed out loud at Minghao nagging at him. “I only saw that picture you sent me of you looking totally handsome and then nothing! What happened later? Did you hook up with anyone? How did the people from the town treat you? Do I need to go there and punch someone?” Minghao spammed him with questions and Mingyu couldn’t stop laughing.

“I didn’t hook up with anyone; the people were staring a bit, but they have been very nice to me and no, you don’t need to punch anyone.” He answered each of the questions, walking mindlessly around the park. “The wedding was very fun, Josh introduced me to his group of friends who, as a matter of fact, are basically all queer, and we had a great time together. We’re even going out later tonight.”

“Hm. Okay.” Minghao tried to sound uninterested, but Mingyu knew him very well to sense the passive aggressiveness.

“No, I won’t replace you for them...” Mingyu tried his best to hold in his laughter and comfort his friend.

“Didn’t say anything.” He replied, still sounding unconvinced. “Are any of them hot? I want pictures.”

“They are, but I’m not here to get laid, I’m here to take a break, remember?” Mingyu reminded him.

“I would truly believe you, Mingyu, if I didn’t know how you can’t keep it in your pants.” Minghao told him, making Mingyu roll his eyes, even if he wasn’t face to face with his friend. “You think with your dick first and then you cause troubles for your soft little heart by getting too attached. I know you, Kim Mingyu.” Mingyu bit on his bottom lip, shaking his head with a small smile on his face. Oh, the amount of times Minghao had to run to his apartment with ice cream to comfort a crying Mingyu because Jihoon had no patience at all to deal with his emotional roommate.

“I think the city and you are a bad influence for me.”

“Sure, darling.”

“I promise you, Minghao, I’m just here to have some fun. ” He guaranteed to his best friend, deciding to change the subject. “And, speaking of getting laid, how is Jihoon?”

“Oh, did you see my Insta stories from last night? We went to that pub we love and Jihoon got wasted! He was so bold afterwards that he even got someone’s number.” Mingyu could hear Minghao’s excitement through the phone and he couldn’t help but feel his chest vibrate with his friend’s triumphant tale. He already missed them a lot. “Now he’s at your place regretting everything, so I’ll go bring him some soup or something and make sure he texts that boy back.”

“You do that, please. And keep me posted on everything.”

“You too, Mingyu. I wanna know everything about these new friends of yours.” He let him know, before saying ‘bye’ and hanging up.

Mingyu was still smiling and putting his phone back in his pocket, when Seokmin, Chan, Jeonghan and Seungcheol rounded the corner.

“Mingyu! We were just about to call you!” Seungcheol smiled brightly, giving him a hug. “I mean, the city’s small so it’s not that much of a coincidence to run into each other.

“Yeah, I was thinking about texting you guys now.” Mingyu hugged him back. “So, what’s up?” 

“Oh, me and Cheol were just at the Lee’s house trying to convince their parents that Seokmin’s not gonna ruin their reputation or anything.” Jeonghan explained to him.

“I think he already did.” Chan gave his brother an annoying look, who just childishly held out his tongue with a crumpled face.

“My parents saw how drunk I was last night, so they went on and on about how we deal with clients at our coffee shop and that word spreads around and we might lose customers because of me.” Seokmin dismissed it. “So I had to call Jeonghan to back me up, since everyone in this town adores him and trusts every word he says.”

“That is true.” Jeonghan shrugged, bragging, which earned him a giggle and a kiss on the cheek from his boyfriend.

“So, anyway, we were on our way to the Jeon’s restaurant so we could get Wonwoo and Soonyoung, who leave work in, like, half an hour.” Seungcheol explained to Mingyu, checking his watch. “And then we can hang out. You got anything to do now? Wanna join?”

Mingyu agreed and the group headed in the direction of the restaurant, just a few blocks away. As soon as they got inside, Mingyu spotted Soonyoung, who startled the customers he was taking orders from by shouting a “Guys!” and waving at them. The restaurant wasn’t very crowded and had just a few tables being served, since it was nearly 4 pm. From what he could spot, there were only two waiters plus Wonwoo at the register.

Walking towards a table by the window along with the crew, Mingyu instantly took in the slightly muffled music and the chatter of customers. There was a strong sense of familiarity in that place that he didn’t visit for a decade. Funny enough, he could almost taste the homemade food and how he missed that rustic charm. Perhaps he was a little too hungry to begin with.

The not-too-wide-nor-too-narrow space looked a little different from what Mingyu could recall. It seemed a little more open. The new walls had a red brickwork pattern while the red oak floors contrasted with the dark mahogany tables. There was now a spot in the back, by the right corner, with some gray sofas along with the tables instead of regular chairs as well. The decorations on the walls and on the tables were simple but had vibrant hot colors and some of them Mingyu could still remember from his childhood (like that odd painting of a chicken wearing a bow tie). Wonwoo’s restaurant was one the oldest and, therefore, most traditional in town. 

Right after getting the orders from the previous family, Soonyoung quickly made his way to the boys’ table, smiling from ear to ear.

“You guys came to pick us up!” He sighed in delight, pulling up a chair and resting on it. “Thank god it’s almost the end of my shift, today was super boring. Can’t wait to drink with everyone.”

“Soonyoung.” Wonwoo approached him from behind, looking drained.

“Yes, boss?” Soonyoung looked up. Mingyu thought he looked like a little kid, even though he was older than him.

“Did you know there’s still ten minutes left until the end of your shift?” Wonwoo crossed his arms over his chest, looking serious.

“Yes…?”

“And did you place the orders you just took?” Wonwoo raised his eyebrows at him.

“No…”

“Then, what are you doing sitting here?”

“I’m sorry, boss!” Soonyoung immediately got up. “I’m on it, boss.”

“I told you there’s no need to call me that…” Wonwoo exasperated, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I don’t know how you can handle working with him everyday.” Jeonghan commented while mindlessly flipping the pages of the menu on the table.

“Yeah, well, I don’t know either, but I should be getting the award for friend of the year for hiring him.” Wonwoo joked. He was about to sit down, when Seokmin interrupted him.

“Why are you sitting down? Your shift’s not over yet.” He smirked at Wonwoo’s eye rolls. “I’d like a milkshake, please.”

“Well, are you paying?” Wonwoo leaned on the table to get closer to him, Seokmin’s smirk fading away. “I’ve already given you enough free food worth the entire month, Seokmin.”

“Fine, I’ll pay.” He scoffed, throwing his arms in fake surrender.

“Then, buy me one as well.” Chan asked him, faking an innocent smile.

“Okay, okay, I’ll pay for everyone!”

“Fucking finally, we’ve been paying for you for years and you never paid us back. Can’t believe this day has finally arrived.” Jeonghan told him, earning a smack on the arm by Seokmin.

“Okay, so milkshakes for everyone.” Wonwoo took his notepad and began taking the orders. “Flavors, please.”

“Strawberry.”

“Chocolate.”

“Vanilla.”

“Strawberry.”

“Hi.” Mingyu gave Wonwoo a small smile when his eyes fell onto him, feeling the boy actually acknowledge him for the first time that day.

“Uhm, hi.” He blinked, thrown back a little.

“I’ll have a vanilla milkshake, please.”

Wonwoo nodded and went back to the kitchen, passing by an excited Soonyoung out of his uniform already yelling “Freedom!” as he high-fived the other waiter who would take the next shift and walked with his arms up towards their table.

It took them half an hour to chat and drink their milkshakes, enough time for Hansol and Seungkwan to meet them in front of the restaurant as they were exiting.

“Where have you two been? We sent you like, four texts.” Soonyoung asked.

“Uhm, I slept at Seungkwan’s last night. We woke up kinda late and then we had to help his mom around the house.” Hansol explained.

“Slept at Seungkwan’s, huh?” Seokmin raised his eyebrows at both of them in a teasing way and Mingyu caught Hansol’s ears immediately getting red before he turned his back to him.

“Shut up.” He muttered over his shoulder.

Interestingly enough, since Joshua agreed to meet them at the beach, their next stop was to buy drinks and snacks at the grocery store owned by Mingyu’s dad.

Mingyu hadn’t been at the place since he’d gotten back home, but his mouth opened at how his dad’s last renovation made the store look much more inviting. He remembered his dad excitedly sending him pictures of the new look, but it was nothing compared to seeing it in person.

“Wow, it looks so much better than ten years ago.” Mingyu commented. The white walls and tiles actually made the store look clean and organized. It wasn’t an enormous grocery store. Compared to the ones Mingyu was used to in Seoul, it was quite tiny. However, that was one of the first buildings in Sokdong for groceries and fresh produce, and certainly the most known and varied. You could find basically everything you needed and Mingyu’s dad (and grandpa before him) had been in there for so long that the spot was almost considered a landmark in town. 

“Right? Your dad really invested in sprucing things up.” Seokmin commented with him. “My mom buys everything for the coffee shop here.”

The group separated in two, half heading to the alcoholic beverages’ aisle and the other to the snacks’ aisle. Mingyu joined the alcohol team and picked a pack of his favorite beer while the others chose between soju, wine and all types of beers. 

“Feels so weird to be buying alcohol from my dad, even though I’m an adult.” Mingyu said, making the others laugh. It really was a strange situation. “I remember when we were fourteen, Wonwoo and I used to sneak in back here to try and get some soju, but my dad always caught us and scolded us endlessly.”

They all laughed, imagining the two as mischievous teenagers, but Wonwoo only looked at Mingyu for a few seconds, biting down on his lip, before focusing back on his beverage of choice.

With everything in hand, the two groups met back at the cashier and Mingyu offered to pay for them, bringing the boys to screams of excitement. All the fuss must’ve drawn the attention of Mingyu’s dad, who was busy in the back and now smiled at the boys, shaking his head.

“I mean, what can I do now?” He shrugged, watching the amount of alcohol his son was buying. “Just… Drink responsibly, please.”

“Thanks, sir! We will!” They all thanked him and left the store on a long walk straight to the shore.

When they got to the beach, the sun was already setting and Joshua waited for them near a huge rock on the sand. The beach barely had people in it at that time, with only a few couples laying around and some teenagers playing by the shore. Now, their own group of ten loud boys would add to the count and figure out where they would stay.

“I’ve been waiting for you guys for forever!” Joshua exclaimed, guitar in hand.

They all exchanged greetings and dropped some towels on the sand to sit in a circle, starting to open the bottles and cans of alcohol. They did it all so unconsciously that it looked to Mingyu like they were used to hanging out like this.

“So, how has married life been?” Chan asked Joshua as he passed him a bottle of soju.

“It’s not even been twenty four hours yet, calm down.” He laughed. “But, I don’t know, kind of the same? It’s very stressful, for now, since we still have to finish packing to move into our new house and then there’s gonna be another chain of events with moving and renovating the place.” He sighed, looking tired. “So, ask me again in a month or so.”

“Wow, great, I really want to get married now, babe.” Jeonghan turned to Seungcheol in a mocking tone. The other pushed his shoulder jokingly.

“I mean, it’s tiring, but I’m really glad I did it. I love my wife.” Joshua smiled big and everyone went ‘aww’ and made other cute noises at how in love he seemed.

“And when’s the honeymoon?” Hansol asked.

“Next week. We’ll go to Europe. Super excited about that.” He answered.

“Isn’t the honeymoon the best part about getting married, though? Just endless sex on beautiful cities without having a care in the world because you’re on vacation?” Seokmin observed. 

“That’s just because you don’t have somebody to love.” Chan nagged on his brother, causing Seokmin to pout.

“And what the hell do you know about love, Chan?” Seungkwan asked the youngest of the group.

“Well, I might know a thing or two…” He shrugged, trying to look dismissive, but smiling as soon as everybody went “ooooh”. “You guys forget that, although I’m on my summer vacation, I still go to college, you know? My world isn’t just this group of people.” He bragged about it. Mingyu had learned through their conversations at the wedding that, unlike Seokmin, who wanted to stay and help with his family’s coffee shop, Chan really insisted on studying Performing Arts at the college of Gwaneung, a town nearby.

“Oh, okay, so there’s lots about Channie that we don’t know about, right?” Jeonghan teased him.

“Right.” He nodded, looking smug.

“So, speaking of love... “ Jeonghan turned to Mingyu. “What’s your deal, Mingyu?” Everyone raised their eyebrows at Jeonghan and an unbothered Seungcheol beside him. “What? I’m not hitting on him, I just wanted to know more about our newcomer.”

“Ah, I’m single.” Mingyu shrugged as he took a sip of his beer. “For like, over a year now.”

“Was your ex-boyfriend famous?” Seungkwan leaned in closer for the gossip.

“No, I haven’t… Hooked up with anyone famous.” Mingyu giggled nervously, looking at Wonwoo through the corner of his eye, who was focused on doodling something on the sand. For some reason, Mingyu was a bit embarrassed in sharing about his romantic life in front of Wonwoo.

As the sun set right in front of them and the stars began to appear, the boys drank and chatted about all sorts of topics for almost an hour. Mingyu got to know that Seungcheol was the manager of the bar around the corner from Mingyu’s house, and the one responsible for starting the LGBTQ+ events once a week along with Seungkwan, who worked there as a bartender and Seokmin, who often performed in drag on those events. It was a very popular event that didn’t attract only the queer community of the city, but also everyone who enjoyed Seokmin’s performances and the special drinks that Seungkwan invented, named after drag queens from the show RuPaul’s Drag Race. Mingyu was definitely invited to their event later that week.

After a few drinks, Joshua pulled his guitar and started to play some random tune while Seokmin, Seungkwan and Soonyoung tried their hardest to come up with lyrics that talked about their day and somehow rhymed. Meanwhile, Hansol was almost dying from laughter as he buried Chan in the sand up to his calves and the boy stood there without being able to move. But, instead of being annoyed, he actually laughed along.

“Hey.” Seungcheol, who was watching the mess of a song the others were trying to pull off, approached Mingyu, handing him a beer since Mingyu’s bottle was already empty. “I wanted to ask you something, if it’s not too much.”

“Sure.”

“Did something happen between you and Wonwoo?” Seungcheol asked, motioning his head towards Wonwoo, who was leaning his back on a rock as he watched Hansol and Chan play with a small smile on his face. “I don’t want to meddle or anything, but he’s been kinda off since you arrived and… I don’t know, maybe I’m just assuming things, but I was just wondering.”

“I…” Mingyu didn’t know what to say, his heart constricting in his chest as he looked at Wonwoo. He had also felt something was a bit unsettling concerning Wonwoo. Of course he didn’t expect things to be just the way they were when he left town, but maybe just a warmer welcome. Instead, Wonwoo looked like he was avoiding him and everytime Mingyu tried to talk to him, the atmosphere turned out quite awkward. “I don’t know. I don’t think anything happened? But I might be wrong. I’ll go talk to him.”

Seungcheol nodded and patted his back, before returning to Jeonghan’s side. Taking in a deep breath, Mingyu got up and sat down beside Wonwoo, who was sitting a few steps behind everyone.

“Hey.”

“Hey.” Wonwoo only looked at Mingyu for a brief second, before turning his gaze back to Hansol and Chan.

“Do you want some?” Mingyu handed him the bag of gummy bears he had bought earlier that day. Wonwoo looked at it and his eyebrows raised, like he hadn’t seen those in a while. “Shocking, right? They still exist. The same gummy bears from the best brand. No other will ever top these ones.” Wonwoo kept looking at the bag for a second and Mingyu genuinely believed he would refuse it, but then he picked two, the ones Mingyu knew were his favorites: red and orange. Mingyu took his favorite blue one and munched on it as well. “I was on a walk around the city today and ended up at Candy Cane. I couldn’t believe Mrs. Eunkyung still worked there. She even offered me her classic green tea.”

“That green tea…” Wonwoo leaned his head against the rock behind them, lips quirking upward with the memories. Seeing Wonwoo smiling like that at something he said felt like some kind of light switch turned on inside Mingyu and he realized he really missed making him laugh. He really missed Wonwoo.

“Wonwoo…” Mingyu looked at him, waiting for a second until Wonwoo chose to turn his gaze back at him. “Is… Everything okay? Are we good?”

Mingyu watched as Wonwoo’s face fell for a second and he looked down, gulping.

“Uhm, yeah. Why wouldn’t it be?” He began drawing random shapes on the sand between the two of them.

“I don’t know, you’ve just been so quiet. And… We haven’t talked properly ever since I arrived.” Mingyu bit on his bottom lip. “I’ve missed us.” He looked at him once again, searching for Wonwoo’s eyes, which took another couple of seconds before meeting his own.

Wonwoo had an imperceptive look in his eyes, as if a million things were running through his head. Mingyu just wanted him to say something, to say that everything was fine, that he was happy to see Mingyu and that they could at least try to go back to being friends.

To Mingyu’s disappointment, however, Wonwoo just lifted his head to look at the ocean and nodded.

“Hey guys! Come here! Let’s play truth or dare!” Mingyu was startled when he heard Seungkwan calling for them. Wonwoo quickly got up to join them in the circle and Mingyu did the same.

“What are we? Twelve?” Joshua mocked them as Seokmin prepared the bottle in the middle of the circle.

“Shut up, you know you wanna do it too.” Soonyoung told him, almost hopping with how excited he was.

“Okay so, you all know the rules: You can’t keep choosing only ‘truth’ or only ‘dare’, you need to switch it up a bit. Besides, those who don’t answer the truths or accept the dares will have to pay for everything in our next hangouts. Anyway, let’s go.” Seokmin warned them before swirling the bottle.

The first round ended up with the bottom turned to Hansol and the top pointing to Soonyoung.

“Let’s get it. Dare!” Soonyoung announced before Hansol could even say anything.

“Alright. Pick someone to draw anything on your forehead and... you can’t see it until the end of the game.” Hansol handed him a sharpie he kept with him.

“Easy.” Soonyoung shrugged, careless, handing the pen to Seokmin. “I have not one bit of shame in this body of mine, so I don’t care.”

Seokmin giggled as he drew a dick pointing to the word “dumbass” on Soonyoung’s forehead.

“We really are twelve.” Wonwoo commented with Joshua, but still laughing along.

The next round was Wonwoo’s turn to ask Chan something.

“What’s the most embarrassing song that you secretly love?”

“Uhm, My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion, probably.” Chan answered, a little insecure.

“Uh, of course not? I hear you listening to High School Musical all the time!” Seokmin accused him.

“Shut up! You’re not any better with your Broadway showtunes obsession!” The boy got embarrassed, his cheeks flushing and before he jumped on his brother to fight, Seungcheol spinned the bottle again to move on with the game. 

It was time for Chan to ask Hansol.

“Dare.”

“Choose anyone from this group to sit on your lap for the next four rounds.” He gave Hansol a smug look.

Mingyu, who saw Hansol as a chill dude, was surprised to see him get quite embarrassed for a split second, biting on his bottom lip.

“Uhm… Seungkwan.”

Seungkwan’s ears got red, but he still got on top of Hansol’s lap and sat there comfortably, Hansol’s arms looping around his waist and his chin leaning on the other’s shoulder.

“Aw, cute.” Jeonghan said, sounding faintly amused. Mingyu knew there was definitely a story there between Seungkwan and Hansol but he still didn’t get what it was exactly, noting in his head to ask Seokmin later that night.

“Okay, next.” Seokmin said, while spinning the bottle. Mingyu was distracted and didn’t even notice the bottle pointing at him, the bottom turned towards Jeonghan.

“Let’s go, new boy.” Jeonghan smirked.

“Dare.” He answered quickly, trying to appear bold.

“I want you to arm wrestle... whoever you think is the most attractive person of the group.” Jeonghan’s smirk was wide, too cheerful with his own idea.

“Ooh, a dare and a truth all in one! Nice, Jeonghan!” Soonyoung fist-bumped him, but nobody could take him seriously with that dick drawn on his forehead.

Mingyu looked around at all of the expectant and curious faces of his new friends. Like he had told Minghao, they were indeed very good looking and Mingyu seriously wondered what was up with Sokdong’s genes that made such pretty people like them and yet, he didn’t even have to think about what his answer would be. The truth was that, in his eyes, there was a clear winner.

“Alright, Wonwoo, let’s go.” Mingyu answered instinctively and turned to his childhood best friend without even hesitating, hearing some of the boys screech in excitement.

Wonwoo halted in surprise for a moment, blinking at Mingyu, until he recovered and adjusted his posture, turning to him. Someone gave them an unopened pack of beers as a table and they leaned their elbows on it, raising their opposite hands. Wonwoo’s was calloused and bony, but somehow soft and firm.

“Ready?” Mingyu raised his head to ask Wonwoo, only then realizing how close they were. Wonwoo did the same and quickly looked back down at their hands, nodding. All Mingyu heard from the others was silence, every one of them holding their breaths, focused on the two.

They waited for Soonyoung’s countdown and when he screamed “Go!”, their match began. It didn’t last long, since Mingyu didn’t even care much about it and quickly lost to Wonwoo, who got a few cheers from his friends.

“Who knew, huh? You always thought you were the weakest one.” Mingyu nudged him, before turning back to the guys. Wonwoo’s eyes softened immediately, but in a split second turned serious again. After moving back to his spot in the circle, Wonwoo threw a “quit it, guys” to the group, since the others were looking at them like they were watching a movie or something.

“Okay, next…” Mingyu spun the bottle himself, since most of them were too busy staring between the two of them and each other. Mingyu, however, was ready for that awkwardness to go away.

The bottle landed between Seokmin and Wonwoo.

“Dare.” Wonwoo said nonchalantly.

Seokmin’s grin was almost immediate, looking back and forth between Mingyu and Wonwoo.

“Seokmin…” Wonwoo gave him a death stare as a warning.

“Fine…” He threw his arms in defeat. “Go jump in the sea with only your underwear, then.”

“That’s cruel.” Seungcheol commented.

“What? It’s just a bit chilly.” Seokmin defended himself. “It’d be cruel if we were in winter. Now, if he’d prefer, I have another dare for him...” He said in a teasing tone, one eyebrow raised at Wonwoo.

“I’m going.” Wonwoo replied instantly, quickly taking off his clothes in front of them, Mingyu realizing how athletic, but somewhat slim, he had become in comparison to ten years before.

“Dammit, didn’t even give us a chance to check him out properly.” Soonyoung pouted as Wonwoo ran towards the dark sea.

“Aren’t you straight?” Joshua questioned him.

“What? Can’t a dude simply admire his friend’s body?” Soonyoung confronted, bickering back and forth with the rest of the group and overusing the word ‘homie’.

Meanwhile, Wonwoo went in for a quick dive and sprinted to return to them with his arms crossed over his chest. Chan handed him his clothes and he quickly began putting them on, shaking his wet hair afterwards. Mingyu didn’t fully understand why, but he immediately turned his gaze away as Wonwoo was standing there half-naked, feeling his cheeks flush.

It was unusual for Mingyu to feel shy like this near men in their underwear, since he had done a lot of jobs in his career that included taking photoshoots amongst other semi-naked people, including himself. He had also hooked up with a lot of guys, so seeing an exposed chest wasn’t anything new or weird to him. However, there was something about Wonwoo that felt too intimate to look at, like he wasn’t allowed to cross that line he drew himself in his brain.

The next round it was time for Seungcheol to ask Seokmin and he dared him to randomly scroll through his contact list and prank call the person he picks and try to sell them a wig. It was almost 9 pm already and Seokmin ended up calling the old lady from the flower shop, whom he had the number, since she sold them floral arrangements to decorate the coffee shop. Mingyu had never seen Seokmin embarrassed before and it surprised him the way the boy kept on apologizing on the phone while talking about the advantages of a wig.

“I’m gonna kill you, hyung, she’s such a nice lady. Now I could even lose a supplier.” He told Seungcheol after hanging up.

“Well, you can always explain everything to her tomorrow morning.” He assured him, opening a brand new soju bottle for Seokmin to drown his sorrows.

Chan spun the bottle for the next round and it landed on himself and Jeonghan.

“You know I like dares.” Jeonghan gave him a wink.

“Alright, then do a sexy dance for two minutes. With no music.” Chan looked at him defiantly.

At first, Jeonghan was a bit embarrassed dancing in the middle of their circle with no music playing, but then he locked eyes with his boyfriend and began twerking in front of him.

“Okay, nope, this will turn into a lap dance from Jeonghan to Cheol.” Seungkwan tried to stop him.

“What? I can dance for anyone, you want me to dance for you?” He teased, moving closer to Seungkwan and laughing with how Hansol automatically pulled Seungkwan closer in his lap. It was already past the four rounds Seungkwan was supposed to be sitting there, but none of them seemed like they wanted to move anytime soon.

They were all so very drunk at this point, giggling at everything, laying down on each other, their clothes all filled with sand, that Mingyu didn’t even realize the bottle had been spun again and Soonyoung was already asking Seungkwan without the other even choosing what he wanted first, truth or dare.

“Boo Seungkwan, tell me something.” Soonyoung pointed at his friend, who furrowed his eyebrows in surprise. “You keep saying you and Hansol only hook up when you’re drunk, but why is it that neither of you ever hook up with anyone else?”

Everyone went “ooooh” and Joshua even high-fived Soonyoung, who was smirking at Seungkwan, expecting his answer.

“I… Uhm…” The usually loud and witty boy got red from head to toe, stuttering. He stopped to think for a few seconds. Meanwhile, Hansol tried to hide himself behind his back. “I just wouldn’t want to kiss any of your dirty mouths.” 

“Fine, I’ll pretend to accept that answer.” Soonyoung looked smug, like he won a battle, while Seungkwan narrowed his eyes at him, annoyed.

Getting up from his spot to grab another drink next to Jeonghan, Mingyu kneeled down and started to chat with him, so he couldn’t have avoided the bottle landing between him and Wonwoo, sitting now right across from him.

“Ooh, this will be good.” Chan commented with the wryest of smiles, pretending to eat some invisible popcorn.

“Uhm, truth.” Mingyu told Wonwoo, anxiously waiting for what he had to ask him.

Wonwoo, who was leaning back on the sand, sat up straight and looked at Mingyu, serious.

“If it wasn’t for Joshua’s wedding, would you ever come back here?”

Everyone was quiet, staring at Mingyu.

“I…” Mingyu had no idea what to answer. Putting down his bottle of beer, he swallowed his saliva and began to think. He actually didn’t know. When he’d left town, he was so focused on his new life, that his mind unconsciously made him forget some things about his old one. The only connection he’d had with Sokdong for the last ten years had been his family and his cousin, so if nothing happened that made him go back, there was a high possibility of him never returning home… right?

“I don’t know. Probably not.” He said, honestly.

Wonwoo nodded, wearing a grave expression on his face, like he’d gotten the answer he was expecting, but didn’t want to hear. And that made Mingyu feel like crap. The breeze that before felt cool and welcoming against his face at that moment felt cold and sharp, drying his lips and emptying his throat.

“Okay, I think we’ve played enough, right?” Joshua, clearly one of the few still sober ones, took the bottle from the sand to place it inside the plastic bag they were using for trash. “You all help me out. I won’t be the only one cleaning our mess.”

And so they did. Their space wasn’t that much of a mess, since most of them were organizing their empty cans and bottles as they drank them throughout the evening. Soonyoung, mid-cleaning, finally took a look at himself at the reflection of a bottle and realized the drawing on his forehead. The boy smacked Seokmin’s shoulders in some sort of revenge and tried to rub it off, only smudging more paint all over his face and making everyone throw their heads back as they laughed. 

At some point during the night, Jeonghan and Seungcheol had started to make out without anyone even noticing, Seokmin was basically falling asleep on Soonyoung’s shoulder, Seungkwan was still on Hansol’s lap, talking and giggling very close to his face, Chan started playing on his phone and Joshua began chatting with Wonwoo. Mingyu quietly observed the last two while drinking his beer with just one thought in his head: He definitely needed to talk to Wonwoo and work things out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys so much for following this fic! Please, let me know what you think of it so far :)


	3. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! It's already May 26th in Korea, so I just wanted to say happy anniversary to Seventeen!!! Our boys have been with us for five years and I couldn't be grateful to everything they've done for us (also did anyone see the Snap Shoot special video?! Mingyu multitalented king!!!). Anyway, back to the chapter. Some of you have been asking me about Wonwoo's feelings and here it is: a whole insight onto Wonwoo's troubling thoughts. This chapter is shorter than the other ones because it's basically just Wonwoo reminiscing on the past and how things happened with Mingyu. I hope you like it and let's dive in to Wonwoo's perspective!

Wonwoo had his hands in his pockets, lazily swinging side to side as the boys said their goodbyes to each other. He tried to look away, but his gaze automatically fixed on Mingyu, as the boy laughed out loud with Chan and Hansol at something they had said. He watched the tall model lean on Hansol as he laughed with his whole body, that smile with his pointy canines very familiar to Wonwoo.

“Hey, earth to Wonwoo.” Joshua waved his hand in front of him and Wonwoo snapped out of it, turning to his friend. “I asked if we should go now.”

“Yeah, alright.” Wonwoo nodded and they waved their friends goodbye before turning around the corner and walking side by side.

Joshua was the only one from the group who lived near Wonwoo, a bit far from the commercial center of the town, but still at a walkable distance.

“Gosh, I love having these moments with the guys, it always takes my mind off things.” Joshua commented with him, with his guitar on his back, as they walked together.

“Yeah...”

“And I have so much to arrange for my trip next week, so it feels good to get distracted at least for a little bit.” He went on, but Wonwoo wasn’t listening to him, lost in thought as he walked with his head down, eyes on his feet going one after the other.

They said their goodbyes when they reached Wonwoo’s street and Wonwoo almost tripped on Choco, his 3 year-old black cat, who went to welcome him at the door.

“Oh my– Hey, Choco.” He kneeled down to pet her, smiling when she nuzzled her head on his legs, demonstrating affection. “Don’t hide in the dark, you almost scared me to death.”

He noticed the first floor of his house had the lights out, meaning his parents were probably in bed already, since they were used to sleeping early. It was almost midnight, so Wonwoo was feeling pretty tired as well. Rubbing his eyes, he went up the stairs to his bedroom, Choco following him, and threw himself on his bed, looking up at the ceiling.

Mingyu’s words “probably not” still ringed in his head. If he’d ask Wonwoo if he ever expected Mingyu to come back to town, he’d also answer “probably not”. He still remembered the shock he felt when he saw his childhood best friend enter the church at Joshua’s wedding. As if a lightning struck upon him, he had felt paralysed and helpless. The possibility of him seeing a mirage or something even crossed his mind.

When he had said goodbye to Mingyu, ten years before, they were separated with the promises to keep in touch, to never forget each other and to visit ever once in a while. “My dad is still living here, of course I’ll come visit. Every holiday. You’ll see.” Mingyu had promised him. But none of that ever happened. 

It wasn’t sudden, though. Mingyu and Wonwoo still kept in touch for about three months after Mingyu moved to Seoul through five exchanged letters.

Looking at his closet, Wonwoo hesitated for a while, before getting up and grabbing a wooden box from deep inside, hidden behind his coats. There, he had kept valuable mementos from his childhood and teen years: His favorite yoyo, his first pair of glasses, a cinema ticket for the premiere of the first Avengers movie, his broken Game Boy, a few polaroid pictures – three of them of him and Mingyu around the ages of five, eight and thirteen years old – and, underneath all of those items, there were the five letters Mingyu had sent him.

Wonwoo sat on his bed and looked through each letter, all of them addressed “To: Meowth Wonwoo”, a running joke they had that Mingyu kept telling him he looked a lot like Meowth from Pokémon. Wonwoo got annoyed at the time, since the character was part of the rival gang, but Mingyu would find it funny and repeat it even more to piss him off.

He quickly read through all of the letters and noticed how much shorter they got as time went by. The first one was two pages long, filled with details about Mingyu’s first week in Seoul, his school, his new apartment, the busy streets and huge shopping malls, the shining buildings and huge billboards, the things he already missed from Sokdong, everything. It even contained a couple of pictures inside the envelope of fourteen year-old Mingyu posing with his mom in front of the Han River and at Namsan Tower.

In comparison, the last letter had only half a page written, about how he was beginning to take his first exams of the semester and would be really busy for a while. Mingyu didn’t have anything new to say on the letter and neither did Wonwoo in his answer, especially with his known and common routine in Sokdong. But it felt like Mingyu didn’t try hard enough and that’s what upset fifteen year-old Wonwoo.

Leaning against the headboard of his bed with Choco nuzzling on his lap, Wonwoo wondered if maybe he was actually upset at himself. Maybe the problem was that he couldn’t live with the fear of being left behind. Instead of becoming happy for Mingyu’s swift adaptation to his new life, like any other person probably would’ve, he got pissed off. He remained convincing himself that Mingyu was to blame, month after month, until he figured he should just forget and move on. His pride took the best in him, in not reaching out or understanding that friendship is a two-way street. 

When Wonwoo had his first actual kiss with the class president before turning sixteen on a movie night at Soonyoung’s place, he felt a little weird for thinking of someone else during it, someone he was vehemently trying to forget. At home, he questioned why his mind played tricks with him. Why his chest felt so crushed still. He came to realize that maybe he was mad because, at that point, he was too late in realizing he had a crush on Mingyu.

As a fifteen-year old, Wonwoo had a lot of questions concerning his likes and dislikes in people. He had never had a date or something before, just a peck on the lips with Heejung, his classmate, who ambushed him at school recess, when they were twelve. Wonwoo certainly knew that he was interested in girls – sometimes he was attracted to them when he watched them play sports at school, he had imagined himself with them before and he probably thought that he would just live a regular life by falling in love and marrying one, someday. What he didn’t know clearly yet was that he also felt attracted to… boys. (Hence his incessant and perturbed thoughts the last couple of years.) He just did not expect to have developed feelings for Mingyu.

Wonwoo began to notice those different feelings just a few months before Mingyu left for Seoul. He’d catch himself staring at Mingyu for a little longer than necessary, giving a lame excuse like “You got ketchup on your chin” when the other would inquire him about it. Mingyu would also appear in his thoughts more often as Wonwoo was trying to get some sleep and he’d really do his best to try and get his best friend out of his head, like counting sheeps or something, but then that tall idiot with that cute smile would appear in his mind once again. 

Actually, he didn't truly know when those feelings began exactly, but it was probably around the time Mingyu pretended not to remember his ten year old birthday – when he planned a surprise by the end of the day with a self-made strawberry cake that didn’t taste nor look like a cake and gifted him with a "fancy camera" made of cardboard and glue. He knew Wonwoo's parents couldn't afford anything fancy and neither did Mingyu, so that was his solution back then. And Wonwoo had nonchalantly mentioned it only once that he wished he had a camera. The shock of realizing that Mingyu always remembered these small details in their exchanges, that he always tried to include Wonwoo in conversations even though he usually wasn’t asked to participate much or that he made him feel as part of something bigger, almost seeing through Wonwoo and believing in his true potential… that struck something inside Wonwoo.

Maybe Mingyu’s consideration and care always made something surge through him and send shivers on his skin. As a preteen later on, his friend also got a little too charming, somehow. Mingyu’s oily face full of pimples looked pretty cute with his crooked smile throwing the stupidest joke. Or maybe even after that, as teens, when Mingyu was supposed to meet Wonwoo by the court and took way too long, so Wonwoo went on a search for him all around school until he found him inside the locker room, wet hair and towel in waist and Wonwoo felt something bubbling in his stomach and shamefully ran away.

There were many occasions that made Wonwoo’s heart beat faster and his ears blush, so it just felt confusing in his head. He never really thought of himself with boys before, especially with Mingyu – or at least he lied to himself that he didn’t. He thought that it was probably just excitement for having such a good friend or being seen or… the puberty hormones. Well, it took him a while to realize that was a real crush. Wonwoo kept denying his feelings and only admitted them to himself when it was too late.

Mingyu had already left for Seoul and he’d be missing him at every little activity he did, like at school, at the park, when he played games, or simply on those sunny afternoons when he and Mingyu would meet up at the beach to talk and talk about everything hours on end. Wonwoo would anxiously wait for Mingyu’s letters, feeling like it was the only string left of their friendship he could still hold onto. He wrote Mingyu back every time. The first, the second, the fifth, and then he got no answer. He wrote a sixth letter to see if, somehow, Mingyu hadn’t received the previous one. But again, no answer. Then, Wonwoo just threw a fit.

Lying while caressing Choco on his lap, Wonwoo remembered being fifteen and crying in his bedroom, pissed off at Mingyu, thinking that he had gotten tired of Wonwoo, probably moved on with brand new friends, and that they’d never see each other again. At that point, everything would lead to Mingyu. Places they explored, snacks they constantly shared or media they consumed as a habit. He would listen to Frank Ocean’s Forrest Gump in his room and Mingyu would come up on his mind as he listened to the verse “running on my mind, boy”. That was one of the movies he and Mingyu rewatched about ten times.

Wonwoo was mad at Mingyu for quite a while, but also at himself, that he wasn’t able to figure out his sexuality and infatuation towards Mingyu earlier on. He thought of the possibility that he could’ve told Mingyu about it and the feeling could be mutual and they could’ve tried a long distance relationship. It wouldn’t be that hard, Wonwoo would try his best. Now, though, almost at the age of twenty five, Wonwoo knew better. He knew that life wasn’t a romantic drama and that, most likely, Mingyu didn’t feel the same about him or, if he did, the long distance relationship would backfire and it would probably hurt the both of them. And he was glad he never said a thing at that point, for he wasn’t as mature as nowadays.

Leaving for Seoul and stopping with the letters didn’t cut Mingyu out of Wonwoo’s life so easily, though. He still saw Mingyu’s father and Joshua basically everyday and Mingyu’s cousin would tell him what was new with him, every once in a while, without Wonwoo even asking for it, those “Oh, you don’t know? I thought Mingyu would have told you that”, unintentionally hurting Wonwoo quite a lot. Of course, Joshua figured out some time later that his cousin and Wonwoo weren’t keeping in touch anymore, so he quit bringing it up that often. 

Nevertheless, that didn’t stop him from showing Wonwoo Mingyu’s first pictorial as a model on his Instagram one day when they were walking back home together. Wonwoo had long gotten over his crush, but it still pained him to see who used to be his best friend in this new chapter of his life and have no idea how he was doing or who he was as a person anymore. Did Mingyu still like the same things he used to? Was he dating someone? Did he go to college? What was his new job like? Perhaps he wanted to know more, he wanted Mingyu to tell him these things. But, he had no way of knowing or the courage to reach out.

As the years passed by, Wonwoo moved on with his own life, but somehow Mingyu's life updates would keep falling on his lap. Either his parents and neighbors would hear a proud comment from Sangwoo, Mingyu's father, or Joshua himself would show his cousin’s Instagram feed when they hung out from time to time. TV commercials for huge brands, photoshoots for some of the biggest magazines in the country, a few runaways, selfies with celebrities, stories at after-parties… That was Mingyu’s new life. And Wonwoo wasn’t jealous. He was very, very proud of him, of what he accomplished. Mingyu had always been an amazing person and Wonwoo wished the best for him. Although he had a much healthier and balanced mindset as a young adult, acknowledging Mingyu’s success and being happy for him, he had developed other insecurities of his own.

So many people around him compared achievements and dreamed big that he felt a little out of place. He couldn’t help comparing himself with other people’s accomplishments. Wonwoo was lost. Just like he was confused about his own identity and sexuality, Wonwoo also had no idea what to do for his profession. He had no plans for the future or what he was supposed to do after he graduated school. How could an eighteen-year old know what they’re gonna do for the rest of their life? All the pressure led Wonwoo to develop a bit of an anxiety, but, thankfully, his parents were not demanding of him, always making sure to let him to take his time.

“You can work with your father and me at the restaurant until you figure out what you really want, sweetie. You’ve always helped here or there, so you are at least familiarized with the responsibilities.” His mom had told him one day, seeing how distressed he was feeling.

And that’s what he did. Wonwoo worked at the restaurant for two years, doing a few online courses on administration, business and finances, so he could at least technically know what he was doing. It wasn’t something Wonwoo thoroughly enjoyed, but he took pride in helping his family and improving their business while he tried to figure out what he would really like to do. Wonwoo didn’t have time for that, though, since his father got into an accident in the midst of the restaurant’s renovations, falling from a big height and breaking his hip. The accident shook his family and the responsibility of the restaurant fell almost entirely onto Wonwoo’s shoulders, since his mom had to stay home to take care of his dad for the long period that a fractured hip takes to heal completely. It was a harsh time, with Wonwoo suddenly dealing with so much by himself, with little preparation and experience for it, but he liked to think he ended up doing a pretty reasonable job.

Now, three years later, Wonwoo was already used to everything and his mother often said he ran things even better than his dad or her ever did. Fortunately his father was already entirely healed and could go to back to work – as could his mother, who had accumulated all the responsibilities taking care of the home, her husband and some leftover administration service from the restaurant that she did her best teaching Wonwoo. His family got used to Wonwoo being there, helping to run things smoothly, so the boy really did not see himself getting out of there anytime soon, since everything got back to normal. 

So, yes, sometimes he did compare his life to his friends’ and… Mingyu’s. Yes, he hated doing that. And yet, Mingyu was just a distant thought, someone who used to be a part of his life, so, at that point, he probably didn’t even spare a thought of him. To be fair, even Wonwoo thought he would never see him again. Until the day he did.

Watching Mingyu reappear at Joshua’s wedding left Wonwoo perplexed. After all these years, was he really back in town? Wonwoo had mixed feelings. He was glad to be seeing him again after so long, but he was also mad that Mingyu had cut ties with Wonwoo, left this entire part of his life behind so easily and then return to town... just like that. Perhaps Wonwoo did not one hundred percent move on from everything. But it didn't matter. Probably.

Well, since Mingyu would probably go back to Seoul after the wedding anyway, Wonwoo decided to let it go. He felt like there was nothing to be said and Wonwoo wasn’t much of a small-talk-kinda-guy. He had decided to just ignore Mingyu and focus on taking care of the event. 

But then, he found out Mingyu would stay in Sokdong. For two whole months. And he even effortlessly became a new addition to their group of friends, which meant Wonwoo would have to interact with him way more than he had planned.

And Mingyu wanted to talk to him, since knowingly something was off. So, what was Wonwoo supposed to tell him? That he’s upset for how they left things between them? That he had a massive crush on Mingyu and never told him? That he kinda envied how Mingyu had his life figured out and he didn’t and was basically a loser?

Wonwoo didn’t know what to say to him, but he realized they needed to talk, to get off of that awkward atmosphere between them. He just didn’t know how to interact with him now. Ten years later, back from the big city and a successful job… Who was he? Was he still Wonwoo’s best friend or was he someone completely different? 

Most importantly, who was Wonwoo and how much his own self had changed over the years?


	4. Chapter 4

Mingyu woke up pretty decisive that day. He got up early, tired of lying in bed, lost in his confusing thoughts, and went straight to the kitchen to prepare everyone a good and healthy breakfast. His stepmother woke up before he was finished, still slicing a few fruits for a delicious smoothie, yet, even though she wanted to help, Mingyu insisted on her letting him do it and just sit down and talk to him, instead.

Talking to Mingjun was easy. Sometimes she even felt like a second mom to him, being able to listen to what he had to say and look right through him when he was lying. They’d spent only a few days together, but she could already detect when something was wrong with Mingyu and give him the “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” just like his mom always did. Maybe it was a mom thing, Mingyu thought.

“I just…” Mingyu sighed, placing the pancakes and the smoothie in front of them as he was done, sitting down beside her at the kitchen island. Mingyu wanted to let it all out to her, she made him feel that comfortable, but he didn’t even know what was troubling him so much. He just knew he needed to talk to Wonwoo. “I need to sort some things out with someone.”

“Well, you look worried.” She turned to him and lightly squeezed Mingyu’s shoulder, showing him her support. “If you need anything, you can count on me, you know that, right?”

Mingyu nodded. His dad was a trustworthy person as well, but when it came to talking about feelings, the both of them could never leave that awkward atmosphere that would grow between them. He loved his dad, but advice wasn't his thing.

Finishing up his breakfast, Mingyu only waited for his little sister to wake up so he could give her a good morning kiss and make her company while she ate, before he went out the door and determinedly made his way to the Jeon’s restaurant.

Mingyu, however, did not think it through before he went inside the restaurant and stared at the place. His mind was blank. 

“Mingyu! Hey buddy!” He heard Soonyoung’s loud voice from afar and saw the boy happily approaching him after serving some drinks to a couple at one of the tables. The restaurant was kind of empty, given the strange hour. The few customers occupying about four of the tables were there either for a late breakfast or an early lunch.

“Did you come here to pay me a visit or would you like a table?” Soonyoung asked him.

“Actually, I… Kind of needed to talk to Wonwoo hyung. Is he here?”

“Sure!” Soonyoung replied, happy to help. “He’s in the office right now, I’ll go get him.”

Before Mingyu could tell him not to disturb Wonwoo, that he would come back later, since the other was probably busy, Soonyoung was already walking towards the back of the restaurant.

Mingyu sighed, mentally cursing himself. What was he thinking? Was he just gonna appear like this at Wonwoo’s work and ask the other to talk to him? To leave everything at work and pay attention to Mingyu? When he hasn’t even had a proper conversation for over five minutes with Mingyu ever since the younger was back in town? Unlike him, Wonwoo wasn’t on vacation and couldn’t simply do whatever he wanted.

As he was about to turn around and leave, however, Wonwoo came in from the kitchen door, a light frown on his forehead, probably wondering what Mingyu wanted with him so early in the day.

“Hey, Mingyu…” Wonwoo approached him, a bit hesitant. “You wanted to see me?”

“Yeah, I…” Mingyu scratched the back of his neck, embarrassed. “I kind of wanted to talk to you? If that’s okay?” He asked, unsure.

“Uhm… Yeah.” Wonwoo agreed, clearly finding the situation a bit unexpected. “I actually have to finish a few things in the office right now, but I’ll be done in about half an hour. Is that okay?”

“Yeah, of course! I’ll order something, it’s totally fine.” Mingyu assured him.

He took a free table with a sofa so he could sit back and relax with the ambience music that was playing. It was actually quite calming and it helped him clear a lot of his thoughts while he was waiting. Almost half an hour later, Soonyoung was sitting with him and sharing his fries when Wonwoo approached them, without his uniform and with a bowl in his hands.

“Soonyoung?” Wonwoo furrowed his eyebrows at him.

“What?” The boy raised his head and sighed, his cheek full with the fries he stole from Mingyu. “There’s barely any customers and I’m keeping an eye on them, in case anyone needs anything.”

“Well, if you’re sitting here, they’re gonna think your shift’s over, which it isn’t, right?” Wonwoo sat in front of Mingyu, placing the bowl of food he was holding on the table.

“But I wanted to catch up with Mingyu…” Soonyoung whined.

“Actually, I wanted to discuss something with Wonwoo in private… If that’s okay.” Mingyu clarified, causing Soonyoung to raise his eyebrows. If the boy was a puppy, Mingyu was sure he’d have his ears perked.

“Oh… Right… Okay, then. I’m on my way. Back to waitering.” Soonyoung quickly got up, straightening his uniform and getting some last couple of fries before he backed away. He made sure to dramatically wave his hands to him as he walked away. “See you, Mingyu...”

“I’m sorry about him, he’s… a handful.” Wonwoo sighed, with a bit of a smile in the corner of his lips.

“It’s no problem at all, I like Soonyoung a lot. All of the guys, actually.” Mingyu commented, waving back to Soonyoung. “It’s been really fun hanging out with all of you.”

“Yeah, we’re very chaotic.” Wonwoo chuckled, taking a spoon off the table and beginning to eat the fried rice he had in his bowl. Mingyu watched him eat while taking a sip off his milkshake, noticing that was probably the first time Wonwoo wasn’t avoiding him ever since he’d arrived in town.

“Are you on your lunch break?” Mingyu asked him.

“Yeah.” Wonwoo looked at what Mingyu was eating: fries and milkshake. “Aren’t you gonna have a proper meal for lunch?”

“No, I’ll have a meal for dinner.” Mingyu shrugged. “This whole vacation thing blew my mind and I’m in awe that I can eat whatever I want without worrying about swelling before a photoshoot. So, I’ll just enjoy it.”

“That’s a good mindset to keep.” Wonwoo commented, after getting another mouthful of his fried rice. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

“Right. Well…” Mingyu straightened his posture, getting ready to move from their light conversation into a more serious topic. “About last night. Your question… about me not coming back here.”

Mingyu watched as Wonwoo’s face stiffened, looking down at his food.

“I felt bad after saying that I probably wouldn’t come back.” Mingyu continued. “You know, my life in Seoul is very busy and I had never even considered taking a long break like this, so coming back here didn’t cross my mind, but it’s not like I forgot this town. Sokdong will always be a part of who I am.”

“You don’t need to explain yourself to me, Mingyu.” Wonwoo raised his head, speaking sincerely with his gaze on Mingyu’s eyes. “It’s okay. I get it.”

“I know, it’s just…” Mingyu shrugged, leaning his back on the sofa while he sighed. “We haven’t talked properly ever since I came here.” He said, looking dejected, his gaze on Wonwoo. “And I feel like you’ve been ignoring me, like something’s wrong.”

Wonwoo was silent for a few seconds, looking at Mingyu while he slightly nodded his head, thinking of what to say. 

“I… I’m sorry I made you feel like that. I wasn’t trying to ignore you.” Mingyu knew he was being honest by the tone of his voice.

“I came back here and I was engulfed with all of the memories and…” Mingyu told him, biting on his bottom lip, unsure of Wonwoo’s reaction. “I kind of wanted to go back to being your friend.” He admitted. “I’m well aware that I messed up our friendship quite a while ago, we lost contact and it all kind of faded away, but can we just… Try to mend things? I’d really like to catch up with you, to know how your life has been and everything.”

Mingyu was an emotional person, he knew that. He usually said things without thinking first and that would often cause him some uncomfortable situations, but he spoke from the heart. If it was someone else in his place, they’d probably check how Wonwoo’s been giving him the cold shoulder throughout these days and if it’d be really worth trying to save their relationship if he’d only stay in town for two months. But not Mingyu. Mingyu wasn’t that rationally driven. He hated feeling like someone had a problem with him and needed to sort things out with the person.

“Mingyu…” Wonwoo sighed, giving him a sad smile while he twirled the metallic length of the spoon in his finger. “Are we even the same people we were back then?”

Mingyu stopped for a second to really think about his question.

“Well, we could get to know each other, then. The new Wonwoo and the new Mingyu.” He shrugged. It was simple to him. All he was asking for was a conversation.

There was a moment of silence as Wonwoo finished chewing his food and pondered what he would reply. Mingyu swallowed hard, a little too nervous with his own expectations.

“Alright.” Wonwoo nodded, agreeing. He suddenly got up and Mingyu looked up at him, confused. “I still got half an hour on my lunch break. I just gotta confirm a few deliveries and catch a few forms back at my house to bring here before the break is over. Would you mind if we talked there?”

“No, no problem.”

Wonwoo excused himself as he made a few calls to the restaurant’s distributors on their way to his place, so Mingyu kept silent, walking side by side towards Wonwoo’s house, which wasn’t far from the restaurant, just a couple of blocks away. From time to time, Mingyu dared to stare at Wonwoo, who was solving what seemed to be scheduling problems on a package delivery and who always knew exactly what to say as the people on the other side of the phone spoke. His voice was assuring and composed, and sent unexplainable shivers down Mingyu's spine. Maybe he had a thing for reliability. 

It made Mingyu want to soothe Wonwoo’s forehead wrinkles, which Mingyu assumed were from constantly worrying like that, even during breaks. It sort of reminded Mingyu of his own self when he worked nonstop.

The call ended as they got to the place, so Mingyu shook his head and focused on the image in front of him. Before following Wonwoo inside, he stopped for a second to look at the front of the house he used to visit so much when he was a kid, basically there every day. It hadn’t changed much, the rocking chair that belonged to Wonwoo’s grandfather still on the front porch, the same coat rack you were met with as soon as you came in and the mural of family pictures hung on the wall by the door. Startled by something moving around his feet, Mingyu realized there was actually something new: Wonwoo had a cat now.

“Oh, this is Choco.” Wonwoo explained, seeing Mingyu’s reaction. Even though Mingyu was more of a dog person, he really liked all animals, so he was quick to kneel down and caress the black cat who purred while rubbing its head on his ankles. “She’s five. We adopted her after we found her as a kitten in our backyard.”

“She seems to be very loving.”

“She is.”

“Oh my God, is that a mirage or am I really seeing Kim Mingyu back in my house?!” Mingyu raised his head to see Yoojin, Wonwoo’s mom, standing across the entrance hallway with her hands on her hips and a big smile on her face.

“Mrs. Jeon!” Mingyu stood up and went in for a hug. She was much smaller than Mingyu, so he had to bend down a little.

Jeon Yoojin had always been the sweetest to Mingyu, treated him like her own son and would even lecture him when he was a kid if she thought he did something wrong. Sometimes, Mingyu would take her more seriously than his own father, since he hated making her upset.

“Look at you! You’re so tall and handsome!” She cupped his cheeks to look at him. “At the wedding, I only saw you from afar, since I was busy with the buffet, but I wish I could’ve had time to talk to you! How’s your mom? Nara’s so sneaky! I talk to her constantly, but she never told me you were coming back to town!” Yoojin seemed so excited to be seeing Mingyu again, that he couldn’t help the bright grin on his face.

“My mom’s fine. She was busy with a project for her company, but she said she’d facetime you soon.” Mingyu told her.

“And how’s everything? How’s work? I’ve seen your pictures, you look amazing!” She started questioning him, then stopping to lower her voice. “Ooh! How’s your romantic life?” Yoojin playfully nudged him with her elbow, moving her eyebrows up and down. Mingyu thought she was quite funny. “Any boyfriends? You know, Wonwoo likes boys too. And girls.” She pointed out.

“Mom!” Wonwoo widened his eyes at her, his cheeks already flushing, yet Yoojin completely ignored her son’s complaints.

“Oh Mingyu, it’s so good to see you here again.” She backed away, but still held Mingyu’s hands in hers. “It feels like you two are ten all over again.”

“Yeah, but I promise we won’t make a mess or break anything.” Mingyu winked at her, joking.

“Of course not, my boys are young men now.” Yoojin patted his shoulder, still smiling. “Anyway, I kept you long enough, you two must have a lot to talk about. I’ll go back to getting a few boxes in the car to take to the restaurant.”

“If you want any help you can ask us.” Mingyu offered.

“No, no, it’s okay.” She quickly brushed him off. “They’re light boxes, you can go.”

Mingyu nodded and looked at Wonwoo, who was already heading up the stairs, turning around and giving Mingyu a simple nod with his head, for the younger to follow him.

Walking into Wonwoo’s bedroom after ten years was a whole new experience for Mingyu. Even though the space was the same, the decoration was completely changed. Instead of the dark blue walls and Star Wars posters everywhere you looked, Wonwoo’s bedroom now had a cream and white decoration. His furniture was made of light wood, his white sheets and curtains giving the room a relaxing and more mature atmosphere, even though Star Wars was still present in the shape of a few miniatures and DVDs on a shelf.

“You can sit if you want to.” Wonwoo motioned to his bed as he, himself, looked through some drawers in his desk and picked up some papers. Sitting across from Wonwoo like that, Mingyu couldn’t help but notice how pretty he had become, prettier than he had ever looked, in Mingyu’s eyes, his lean figure and soft features giving him such a delicate aura that made Mingyu feel comfortable just by looking at him.

Mingyu thought that, after getting to this point, they would stay in an awkward silence, not knowing who would start or what they were supposed to say next. However, he was surprised when he heard Wonwoo speaking first, letting the forms on his desk and leaning against his closet.

“So, how’s life in Seoul? Everything you’ve ever dreamed of?” He asked, looking sincerely curious.

“Not exactly.” Mingyu snickered. “I guess… I didn’t have any plans at first. I was just a kid going with the flow. My parents got divorced and my mom told me we’d be going to Seoul with only a couple of months in advance, as you know.” He told Wonwoo, who nodded with his head. “So, getting there, I had to get used to that different pace of things to only then try to figure myself out and what I wanted to do for my future.” 

“And you figured it out, at least? I remember you wanting to do a thousand things at a time when we were younger.” Wonwoo asked with genuine interest.

Mingyu raised his head, to look at Wonwoo. “It took a while. In the big city you have so many options and opportunities, I was quite lost for some time. I even got into college…” He smiled at Wonwoo’s eyebrow raise. He probably didn’t know that information. “Yeah, I studied marketing for a couple of years, but then decided to drop out, to my mother’s despair.” Mingyu let out a chuckle, remembering the amount of yelling he’d heard back then. “I just didn’t think it was the right thing for me. So, I did a couple of odd jobs for a few months, until the opportunity to work as a model came to me.”

“Oh, nice.”

Mingyu playfully glared at Wonwoo, expecting some other comment to carry on with the conversation. It did worry him a bit that he talked incessantly sometimes, but somehow the atmosphere felt comfortable enough for him to continue sharing and, of course, tease Wonwoo a little.

“Aren’t you gonna ask how it happened?”

Wonwoo let out an unrestrained laugh, apparently not believing the boy in front of him. Mingyu’s heart did a small somersault.

“I guess you didn’t change much. Tell me, Mingyu, how did it happen?” 

“Well, Wonwoo,” Mingyu started with a pretentious voice, but continued in his normal tone, “a scout saw me one day at the cafeteria I worked at and asked me if I’d be interested in doing a few photos for an ad. I said yes, I needed money at the time. So, I went and got around for a while with some pictures here and there. Not long after, I met Jihoon, who’s now my agent, roommate and one of my best friends.”

Mingyu looked at Wonwoo after the end of the explanation, smile plastered across his face, and saw the boy nodding and barely fighting back his own smile.

“Joshua showed me a few of your works back then, when you had just started working as a model and… looking at you now and how successful you’ve become… I’m very proud of you, Mingyu.” Wonwoo told him, sincerely, his soft voice making Mingyu’s chest get warm and fuzzy. Mingyu smiled big back at him.

“I’m very proud of you too, Wonwoo. You’ve helped your family turn your business into Sokdong’s most renowned restaurant and I think that’s very impressive.” Mingyu complimented him back.

“Yeah, I mean…” Wonwoo blushed a little, shaking his head afterwards, as if to brush it off. He looked down, not seeming very pleased with himself, as Mingyu would like to see. “It wasn’t much of a choice, anyway. I got used to it and stopped thinking about what I really wanted.” He admitted, still not looking Mingyu in the eye. “Now it’s just become a comfortable future for me. Nowhere else to go for now.”

“But if it isn’t what you want to do for the rest of your life, will you actually be comfortable doing it?” Mingyu questioned him, getting up from the bed so he could look around the room. He felt a little restless sitting all that time. 

“I, uhm…” Wonwoo stuttered while his eyes followed Mingyu.

“May I take a look around the room, sir?” He jokingly asked while studying the Star Wars miniatures, the fiction and non-fiction books on his shelves and, what caught Mingyu’s attention the most, a camera. It was a Canon with a big lens, feeling quite heavy in Mingyu’s hands.

“Yes, yes, you may.” Wonwoo’s lips went up as he seemed to relax after that last question, looking between Mingyu and the camera. Mingyu looked at him with the camera in his hands, curious about the unanswered question still. “I like to film stuff, edit some videos.”

“What ‘stuff’ do you like to film?” Mingyu asked, turning the camera around in his hand to better analyze it. 

“I don’t know, daily activities, the town, my friends…”

Mingyu hummed in response as he focused on turning the camera on. He didn’t bother with being nosy as hell so, with a light buzz, the camera turned on and Mingyu turned the lens towards him, pressing the record button.

“Hi, guys! Welcome to Wonwoo’s channel. I’m Mingyu, his childhood best friend and I’m here today to teach you ten things you need to know about modeling…”

“Mingyu, for fuck’s sake…” Wonwoo interrupted him, taking the camera off Mingyu’s hands and stopping the video. Mingyu giggled and saw that Wonwoo wasn’t actually annoyed, a small smile showing in the corner of his lips. “I’m not a youtuber, I just make these videos for myself.”

“Well, if they’re any good, maybe you should show them to the world.” Mingyu shrugged, speaking honestly.

“Not a chance.” Wonwoo mumbled, turning off the camera and putting it back on the shelf.

Mingyu went back to looking around Wonwoo’s room and began to check his desk by the window. It wasn’t very organized, a lot of stuff, like cables, a water bottle, a notebook, his laptop, the forms he placed earlier and, what intrigued Mingyu the most, a wooden box, one that looked quite old, yet not old enough for him to recognize from years before, in all the times he’d spent in this room.

Wonwoo must’ve noticed Mingyu’s focus on the box, since he approached to stop Mingyu as soon as the younger touched the lid. Wonwoo’s hands hovered above Mingyu’s, seemingly uncertain of what he should do. Mingyu felt a little like a silly preteen because their proximity made his heart skip a beat or two.

“What?” Mingyu turned to him, acting nonchalant with a playful look on his face. “Are you that mysterious, Jeon Wonwoo?” 

Wonwoo seemed hesitant for a moment, like he was thinking whether he should let Mingyu see what was inside the box or not. Mingyu frowned, even more intrigued. And well, maybe he had crossed a line he shouldn’t. When he was about to let it go, Wonwoo pulled his hand away.

“You know what, just look at it, it’s not a big deal.” He said in the end, shrugging.

“I hope I don’t find anything scary or raunchy.” Mingyu lightly crashed his shoulders on Wonwoo’s side, wearing a questioning look.

“Mingyu...” Wonwoo facepalmed as he laughed it off, so Mingyu took his reaction as a positive ‘you may go on’.

Carefully, Mingyu lifted up the lid of the box and wondered what was Wonwoo’s hesitation all about, since he was only seeing a few bits and bobs inside it. Giggling at the Avengers ticket Wonwoo had kept all this time, Mingyu stopped himself when he saw a couple of polaroids of the two of them.

“Oh.” He took them in his hand and an immediate smile appeared on his face as he saw how innocent they both looked in those pictures. Always hugging tight, always having fun. In one of the three, though, Wonwoo and Mingyu weren’t posing. It was a spontaneous one, that Wonwoo’s mom had probably taken when they weren’t looking. Thirteen year old Mingyu was caught laughing so hard that he had to support himself on Wonwoo’s shoulder, while the other sat in front of him and just smiled, a fond look on his face.

Looking back inside the box, Mingyu found, underneath it all, a few letters. And, without even taking them out of the box, he recognized them.

“The letters.” He said, thinking out loud.

“Yeah.” Wonwoo murmured beside him, leaning on the desk while he played with the hem of his shirt. “I don’t know why I kept those.”

“I kept yours too.” Mingyu told him, seeing Wonwoo’s gaze shoot back at him from the corner of his eye.

Mingyu finally took them out of the box and, although they were as light as feathers, they felt heavy on his hand. He sighed realizing how few letters he had written Wonwoo – the lack of contact between them slowly drifting them apart and breaking the strong bond they had at the time.

“Wonwoo, I…” Mingyu raised his head to realize Wonwoo had his eyes locked on him, interested in what he had to say. “I’m really sorry.” He told him, breaking the silence made only of the rustling of the papers on his hands and the wind against Wonwoo's windows. He made sure to look directly into his eyes to show him he meant it. “I was selfish and I stopped writing you without even explaining to you why I did that. And that was so immature of me. Even though I was only fourteen at the time, you were my best friend, and I should’ve been more sensitive towards you and think about how ignoring you like that... must’ve affected you.” He let out a tired sigh, running his hand through his hair. 

That was something Mingyu wanted to apologize to Wonwoo for a long time and now he finally had an opportunity. He was embarrassed about being so stupid and ever doing that to Wonwoo, who didn’t deserve to be left out like that without an explanation. 

“I know you must’ve hated me– I mean, I would’ve, probably– and seeing me come back here after such a long time might’ve brought that back…”

“I never hated you.” Wonwoo cut him off, searching for Mingyu’s eyes so he would see he was being honest. “Not now and not back then.” He guaranteed him. “At the time, I was just… Confused, I think. And angry. And then upset. To see our friendship go like that. I suppose it happens.”

“No, it doesn’t. It shouldn’t– I don’t know what I was thinking.” Mingyu grumbled, shaking his head a bit in disbelief at his younger self. “There's no better way to put it. I think I was really overwhelmed about all the changes in my new life and I thought– maybe, getting distracted with whatever new trend I put my hands on back then would solve it.”

“It's okay, I get it, Mingyu. Back then I also put my mind to work on other things.” Wonwoo absentmindedly fiddled some of the pictures by the wooden box. “Besides, teenagers are dramatic.”

“Tell me about it. I know my mom wanted to throw me out of a window once because I would cause a fuss at everything she rightfully ordered me to do after school. That poor woman.”

“See? Maybe it was a blessing that we weren’t growing together as teens because we would’ve been unbearable. I was the kind to play loud obnoxious music all day long after school.”

“Damn.”

“Right? I would pity our parents if we were together.”

“But like– I just hope that you know… That I just didn’t really know how to deal with my issues and… hormones, I guess.” Mingyu said, feeling more loosened up now that they were putting it all out there.

“The both of us, don’t worry.”

“Yeah,” Mingyu babbled, finally putting the stuff he took from the box away. “I mean, back then, I was also a little sad because I had a crush on you at that time, can you believe it? I thought that cutting off ties with you, ignoring your letters or focusing on a bunch of hobbies would be the smart thing to do.”

“You– You what?!” Wonwoo turned his full attention to the man in front of him, his eyes widened, eyebrows raised as he stared at Mingyu in disbelief.

“Yeah, I…” Mingyu giggled, scratching the back of his neck, a bit embarrassed. “I had a crush on you for, like, over a year before I left for Seoul.” He admitted, looking down at the desk so he wouldn’t stare at Wonwoo while talking about that. “It hurt a lot to leave you and think about my days without you in it, so I decided to stop writing you and occupy myself with… The busy life of Seoul.” Mingyu told him, raising his head back up to Wonwoo’s soft gaze on him. “I moved on with my life, but I never did forget you. Somehow, you've kept being someone dear to me.”

A few seconds passed with the two of them just looking at each other, Mingyu waiting for Wonwoo to say anything as the other stared at him with a frown between his brows, his mouth slightly opened, a million thoughts running through his head or none at all, trying to take in what Mingyu had just told him.

“I had a crush on you too.”

Mingyu almost choked in his own saliva, staring at Wonwoo with widened eyes as the other still seemed quite baffled, blinking more than usual. Wonwoo, then, moved out of his frozen state to run his fingers through his hair and lean his back on the closet, sighing.

“You really did?” Mingyu asked, in need of a confirmation. Were they both best friends, into boys and with a reciprocate crush on each other as teenagers?

So… Did they really have a chance of being together and in love and probably have their lives end up in a totally different way? A myriad of thoughts roamed over Mingyu’s mind in a couple of seconds, the possibilities of what could have successfully brought them together (or, in a much more unhappy note, not). They truly were innocent kids, since none of them realized it back then... Up until now. Two slow-witted friends, too afraid to confess their feelings. Or to even figure their own selves out.

This information couldn’t be true, it all felt like a fairy tale to him. Somehow, it was like a light switched inside Mingyu’s brain.

“I really did.” Wonwoo confirmed, his eyes never leaving Mingyu’s. It had been a long time since Mingyu talked to Wonwoo like this, but he still knew how to tell when Wonwoo was lying and when he was being honest. And, once again, he was being absolutely serious.

“Hey, Wonwoo.” They both got startled by Yoojin suddenly knocking and opening the door. The heavy atmosphere didn’t go unnoticed to her. “Uh, sorry, am I interrupting anything?”

“No, mom, it’s okay.” Wonwoo cleared his throat as he stood up straight.

“I just wanted to know if you need a ride back to the restaurant, because I’m leaving now and I have to take these boxes, so I’ll drive there.” She explained. “But, you can totally take the day off if you need, sweetie, I can take care of the rest.” Yoojin told Wonwoo, looking between him and Mingyu.

“No, I’ll…” Wonwoo quickly looked at Mingyu, then back to his mom. “I’ll go back to the restaurant. I gotta deal with some of the late deliveries. I’m coming with you.”

Mingyu really wanted to talk more about all of this with Wonwoo, but he couldn’t just ask him to skip work so they could have a conversation. That would have to wait.

After that, Yoojin offered Mingyu to give him a ride home, but he politely declined it, since his house was the opposite way of the restaurant and he could use a walk to clear his head a bit. 

“See you around, then.” Mingyu said goodbye to Wonwoo in front of his house, a half smile on his face as the other nodded back at him. It was an awkward situation, they both felt like they had a lot to say to each other and nothing at all at the same time. With a lingering gaze, they walked opposite ways, Mingyu trying to wrap his head around the revelation he just had. 

So, he and Wonwoo both were into each other at some point. But, what about now? Did they have feelings for each other now? Mingyu couldn’t deny that, ever since he saw Wonwoo at the church, he’d felt inclined towards the other, almost seeking to be close to Wonwoo, but that was most likely his subconscious wanting to apologize to the other and trying to at least save a bit of the relationship he used to have with Wonwoo. 

And what about him? What did Wonwoo feel towards Mingyu now? Was he just someone he used to have a crush on? Was the crush still there, hidden? Was Mingyu’s? He couldn’t deny Wonwoo had become quite attractive and, if he didn’t know him and met him at a club in Seoul, Mingyu would probably try to check him out and get his number. 

But this? This was different. And Mingyu was probably crazy and being his emotional self again to dive deep into his thoughts like this. It wasn’t like something could happen anyway, so he should just forget about it. Move on, like he’d done before.

Or maybe not. Maybe he should play it safe and see how it goes. Not dive right in with all the might in the world, but just… test the waters, right?

☼

As it turns out, moving on from the fact that Wonwoo had a crush on him was indeed very hard for Mingyu, since he couldn’t stay away from the other, given his only group of friends in town included Wonwoo as well.

Seungkwan had an idea of doing a volleyball match at the beach only a few days after Mingyu had talked to Wonwoo and somehow convinced everyone to follow his plan. So, there they were, on a Saturday morning under the blazing sun outlining a volleyball court on the sand, since Seungkwan needed the game to be perfect. The issue was that they didn’t have an actual net, or polls, so the “line” that the ball was supposed to cross was made by their sandals all lined up one after the other. Well, at least they had an appropriate ball for the sport, which belonged to Seungkwan.

“I swear to god, if any of you even scratch my ball I’m gonna hit you in the head with it.” Seungkwan threatened them, holding the ball in his hands like it was a treasure.

“Isn’t that gonna worsen the damage, though?” Jeonghan asked him.

“I don’t care, you’ll have to buy me a new one, anyway, so I’ll just use this one to hit you.” Seungkwan shrugged.

“We’ve played this a few times already, but Seungkwan’s always this dramatic.” Chan whispered beside Mingyu, rolling his eyes.

“Okay, so, since Joshua and Seungcheol aren’t here, we have eight people, so someone needs to stick this one out.” Seungkwan explained to them. “With the referee, that makes it seven, which isn’t an even number, so we need to take someone else out to make it six players.”

“Can’t we just play without a referee?” Hansol asked, not seeing what the problem was, since they could be even with four on each team.

“Are you insane?” Seungkwan questioned him, eyebrows raised like Hansol was joking. Hansol just backed away a few steps, scared that the other might hit him because of his question. Seungkwan was clearly very serious when it came to that sport. Seeing Mingyu’s surprised expression, Seokmin approached him to explain.

“Volleyball is the only sport he’s actually into.” He whispered to Mingyu, so Seungkwan wouldn’t listen. “He says soccer’s too straight,” Seokmin lowered his voice even more as he continued. “and I know he hates losing to me because I’m great at it.” He returned to his normal tone of voice. “The other sports apparently have rules that don’t make any sense, so he puts all of his focus on this. And we just let him.” He raised his hand in defeat. Mingyu laughed at how Seungkwan had them all in the palm of his hand.

“Okay, so Wonwoo will be our referee as always, right?” Seungkwan asked him and the other nodded, agreeing. “Let’s throw rock, paper, scissors to see who will stick this one out.”

“Uh, there’s no need.” Mingyu interrupted them as they were about to choose. “I’ll play in the next round, it’s okay. I’ll just… Help Wonwoo with… The referee thing?”

Okay, so Mingyu actually wanted to spend some time with Wonwoo to see if they talked more about… that. So what? That was totally normal.

“Aw man, seriously?” Soonyoung whined, bummed out. “Alright, but you’ll play on my team the next round!”

“No, he’s not, we’re playing rock, paper, scissors to see who gets him.” Chan argued, the competition intensified due to Mingyu’s height being an advantage on the game.

“Hey.” Wonwoo greeted him with a small smile when Mingyu approached and sat beside him on the side of their improvised court. To see that he wasn’t ignoring or being awkward around him was already a huge relief to Mingyu.

“Are they always this intense about volleyball?” He asked Wonwoo, looking at the others finally beginning their match and quickly scoring. Wonwoo drew the first point for Seungkwan’s team with his finger on the sand. 

“They’re always chaotic and competitive about everything, but Seungkwan’s insistent nagging makes volleyball more serious.” Wonwoo explained to him, taking his camera that was hung on his neck to quickly film the boys playing and the lovely summer day at the beach. 

Mingyu turned to Wonwoo as the other put down his camera to watch the game for any penalties. They had admitted their old crush to one another, but somehow, things weren’t awkward between them. Maybe it was even something positive, since Wonwoo appeared to be more open to Mingyu after their talk.

Drifting off from the game, Mingyu couldn’t help but notice how Wonwoo’s pale skin gleamed under the hot sun, his blue tank top barely covering his sides. It was late morning already and the sun was high in the cloudless sky, shining bright on them. There was a drip of sweat that seemed to mock Mingyu as it meandered down Wonwoo’s Adam’s apple.

“What?” Wonwoo noticed his gaze, looking back from the game to Mingyu.

“Did you wear sunscreen?” Mingyu managed to ask out of nowhere to try to cover up for his intense gaze, waking up from his trance. Wonwoo’s lips immediately went up in a light chuckle.

“Yeah, I apply sunscreen everyday before going out.” He told him. "Otherwise I'll be peeling just like a banana."

Mingyu chuckled, turning back to the game. Their silence, however, didn’t even last a minute. Mingyu realized he had so much he wanted to talk to Wonwoo, now that they were past that awkward stage.

“Hey, actually, I was wondering something.” He pointed out, while the other marked a few other points to Seungkwan’s team. Even though they were at an advantage, Soonyoung’s team wasn’t that much behind. “I don’t think Joshua’s ever told me how the group got together.”

“Well, it just sort of happened, I guess.” Wonwoo began explaining while still paying attention to the game. “Hey! Seokmin tripped on the sandals, that’s basically touching the net.” He stopped to yell at them, receiving an eye roll from Seokmin. “So, anyway,” He went on, looking at Mingyu. “I already knew Joshua since we were kids because, well, he’s your cousin. When you left, we got kind of closer because he used to tell me some news about you, like when you became a model.” He looked down and Mingyu bit on his lip, embarrassed that the only way Wonwoo would hear about him would be through Joshua. 

“And he knew the others?”

“Yeah. He’s always been best friends with Jeonghan hyung and Seungcheol hyung, since they were from the same class. So, for a while it was the four of us. But, then, I worked with Soonyoung on a school project, we got close and he started hanging out with us. Seungkwan started working on the same bar that Seungcheol manages today, so they became friends, he introduced him to us and brought along Hansol, who’s basically glued to Seungkwan. And, lastly, Seokmin, who moved from next town to here a couple years back and started going to the gay nights at the bar and asked Seungcheol if he could perform in drag. We’re there every week, so that’s how we got to know him and eventually Chan.”

“That’s so cool how that many of you got together.” Mingyu commented. “I can only imagine all of the fun things you guys have gone through together. I’ve only just gotten to know everyone and I already love it. Wish I could’ve been a part of this before, though.” He sighed, playing with the sand in front of him as he was moping.

“Well, you’re here now. And you’ve told us at the wedding how you also have met some cool people and had some nice experiences away from here, so don't mope about the past.” Wonwoo looked at him and Mingyu returned his gaze, giving him a little bit of a crooked smile.

“Hey, you two! Are you even paying any attention to the game?!” Seungkwan yelled at them. “Stop flirting! Jeonghan hyung just made a huge foul!”

Mingyu watched Wonwoo’s ears flush red almost immediately and he tried to pretend like he didn’t notice, looking back at the game.

Afterwards, Mingyu joined the next match into Sooyoung's team, which made Seungkwan rant about how height doesn’t equal ability – and, to be honest, he was right, Mingyu wasn’t that good at volleyball – and Jeonghan stepped out to help Wonwoo. Seungkwan’s team, with Hansol and Seokmin, ended up beating them once again and the opposite team just threw themselves on the sand, tired and sweaty, but regretted their decision soon enough due to the midday sun that made the sand below them feel like molten lava. 

“Hey, let’s go!” Seokmin took off his shirt and pointed ahead, running towards the sea. For a couple of seconds everyone just stared at each other, but then tagged along. Most of the boys ran to the water and began playing like kids, splashing each other.

Realizing Wonwoo had slowed down behind them, Mingyu looked back to hurry him to the sea, motioning with his arms for him to come. Wonwoo had the camera glued to his face, smiling wide to the group, so when he lowered it down to place it on a towel by his feet and finally followed them, his eyes fixed on Mingyu’s for what felt like an eternity, almost shining more than the sun itself.

Some of the boys had taken their shirts off, while others kept them on – Wonwoo being one of them. And yet... It didn’t stop Mingyu from warily checking the creases of his wet shirt against his body.

Maybe Mingyu was a little too whipped for his own taste.

“Let’s fight on each other’s shoulders!” Chan suggested, immediately trying to climb Seokmin’s back.

Seungkwan convinced Hansol to sit on his shoulders and Jeonghan sat on Mingyu’s, while Wonwoo tried very hard not to fall from Soonyoung’s, since the boy kept moving around. Eventually, Jeonghan won because he had no mercy and hesitation at all when it came to hitting his friends.

They were lucky there were basically no waves in the sea that day, so they could play and swim against each other all they wanted.

“Seriously, why do I even bother taking my shirt off when Mingyu is beside me looking like this?” Jeonghan commented after a dive, bringing everyone’s attention to Mingyu’s bare chest and abs. Even though he wasn’t ripped, Mingyu admitted he liked working out and basically had to because of his job.

“Yeah, Mingyu, that’s kind of unfair. Get out.” Seokmin played along.

“Okay, okay. I’ll go get an ice cream, then.” Mingyu chuckled, shaking the water out of his hair and pushing it back with his fingers. He realized Wonwoo’s gaze laid on him and turned to the other. “Do you want to come too?”

Wonwoo blinked a few times, before realizing Mingyu was talking to him.

“Sure, yeah, let’s go.”

Mingyu certainly wasn’t a saint, so he did check Wonwoo out as they walked out of the water and exchanged small talk about the weather. He didn’t have defined abs, or at least none that was outlined by his wet shirt, but he definitely had some strong biceps, which were clearly Wonwoo’s focus when working out – if he worked out. They walked together towards the ice cream vendor by the rocks that outlined the beach and both got waffle cones with their own flavor of ice cream.

“So, you’re still a mint choco kind of guy, huh?” Mingyu noted as they sat on their beach towels and watched the rest of the guys playing at the sea just a few meters away from them. “I admit it, my palate’s changed and now I kind of like them.”

“Oh, really?” Wonwoo raised his eyebrows at him, amused. “You? The one who kept teasing me by saying that mint choco is disgusting and that it tastes like toothpaste?!” 

“Water under the bridge.” Mingyu dismissed it, giggling.

“So, if your taste changed over the years…” Wonwoo began, looking at Mingyu with a teasing smile on his lips. “Does that mean you might like Star Wars now?”

“Oh, come on!” Mingyu laughed out loud, throwing his head back. “You know that I’ve tried to watch every one of those with you. I really did try.”

“Yeah and I remember you sleeping through the first movie entirely and me having to explain everything to you before the second one.” Wonwoo commented. Mingyu remembered how pissed off his nine-year-old best friend was that he didn’t enjoy those movies as much as he did.

“Look, it’s just not my type.” Mingyu tried to defend himself. “But, maybe we can test if that still stands. Maybe, we can do another marathon.”

“Maybe we can.” Wonwoo nodded, looking at him, a small smile on his face. Their teasing almost made it feel like ten years ago and Mingyu really was positive that they could go back to what they were. 

He just didn’t know if the crush part would also be included in that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this chapter, guys!! Things are finally starting to hit off between Mingyu and Wonwoo and, let me tell you, next chapter is gonna bring a lot to the table... Thank you so much for reading my fic and please write me a comment if you enjoyed it :)  
> Also, I hope you all stay safe and aware. Please, sign the petitions, share and donate to the Black Lives Matter movement if you can. Here's a link with how you can help: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/. Thanks, everyone!  
> Xx


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy comeback day, guys!!! Left & Right is a summer bop and I love my boys so much, I hope everything goes well with this Heng:garae era <3 What did you guys think of the album? To celebrate it, I brought a brand new chapter! Hold on to your seats 'cause this is a long and good one, definitely my favorite to write! Hope you all enjoy it :)

A week passed by and Mingyu started to feel even closer to the guys, they created a group chat with him and would spend hours talking about random things or texting each other to meet up when some of them had nothing to do. More than that, he began feeling even closer to Wonwoo. 

Mingyu felt comfortable around him, like he was free to say anything, even if they’d been ten years apart from each other. He was starting to feel like Wonwoo’s friend again. Sometimes, when he was helping his dad at the grocery store and there was a few deliveries for the Jeon’s restaurant, Mingyu would intentionally offer to go with their business car, so he could catch up with Wonwoo. He got to know the kitchen of the restaurant and even the office where his family would store important documents and Wonwoo would spend hours doing the accounting of their business. Mingyu would, then, realize he lost track of time and had spent almost an hour talking to Wonwoo, when he’d promised his dad he’d be back in fifteen minutes.

There was also one day when Mingyu had just put his sister to sleep, at around 9 pm, and he decided to check up on Wonwoo, wondering what he was doing. The boy had answered he was stressed after going through piles of paperwork for hours and was just leaving the restaurant, to which Mingyu casually replied a “Wanna go out and chat for a bit?”. Surprisingly, Wonwoo said yes almost immediately, clearly needing some relaxing time. The two of them ended up at the empty and barely lit park, sitting on a swing as they reminisced on all of the trouble they used to cause as kids. Mingyu, eventually, tried to go down in the kids’ slide and had to listen to Wonwoo’s incessant laughing after he got stuck and didn’t slide at all.

Bit by bit, Mingyu started to realize he couldn’t get Wonwoo out of his head. He would always text him about something or share a funny video or meme with him. And when he wasn’t talking to Wonwoo, he was thinking about him.

Mingyu had just brought his sister back from a play date with her friends one day when he glanced at the clock and realized it was almost the time Wonwoo usually left work. He had been thinking of asking the other to do something specific with him, but never actually got to, so maybe now they could.

He stood in front of the restaurant, distracting himself with his phone for about ten minutes, until Wonwoo walked through the doors wearing his usual white buttoned down shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbow and black slacks, a navy blue backpack on his shoulders.

“Oh, hey.” Wonwoo gave him a curious smile, surprised to see Mingyu standing there. “What are you doing here? Why didn’t you come inside?”

“I came to pick you up. In my amazing motorcycle.” Mingyu joked, motioning to the badass black leather motorcycle he was leaning on, parked on the sidewalk.

“That one belongs to my chef, a cousin of mine, and he will kill you with his bare hands if you even think about laying a hand on that motorcycle.” Wonwoo warned him, a smirk on the corner of his lips. “So, if I were you, I’d get out of there before someone sees you and lets him know.”

Mingyu widened his eyes and immediately stood up, looking behind to see if he’d done any damage to the precious motorcycle. He was never one to fight, so he’d be absolutely dead if the guy decided to beat him up. Meanwhile, Wonwoo chuckled at how frightened he looked.

“Uhm, anyway…” Mingyu ran his hand through his jeans, unwrinkling them, while he ignored Wonwoo’s chuckles. “I came here because I was wondering if you’d like to go with me to our old lookout…? The one...”

“Where you can see the beach.” Wonwoo completed, knowing exactly what he was talking about. He smiled at Mingyu. “Yeah, I know which one.”

“I haven’t visited that place ever since I came back and we used to go there so often when we were kids that I was just… wondering if it still looks the same.” Mingyu explained.

“Well, it doesn’t.” Wonwoo replied, a bit bummed out. “There was a big storm a couple of years ago and it knocked down a few of the trees. But, it’s still a nice place.” He told Mingyu. “Come on, I’ll show you.”

The lookout place wasn’t very far from Wonwoo’s restaurant, a small trail up a hill only a couple of blocks away, so they made it to their destination in only ten minutes. Getting up there, Mingyu was surprised to see the place so empty and not filled with trees, like it used to be. However, it still had the most perfect view to the beach that Mingyu had ever seen. The sun was almost setting at that time, so it neared the ocean on the east side of the horizon.

“It’s not the same, but… Still beautiful.” Mingyu commented, looking around. Wonwoo took off his backpack and sat down on a rock near the edge of the lookout, staring at the ocean.

“Wow, can’t believe my tree is gone…” Mingyu sighed, sitting down beside Wonwoo.

“You can’t call it ‘your tree’ just because you fell from it once.” Wonwoo chuckled at him.

“Listen, I broke my arm falling from that tree, okay? We had some sort of an attachment there.” Mingyu joked, making Wonwoo laugh even harder. “God, remember that day?” He started to reminisce, his lips quirking upwards. “I remember you cried while we waited for my parents to get here.”

“Well, of course! I was twelve!” Wonwoo gesticulated with his arms, trying to defend himself. “You were in a lot of pain and I didn’t know what to do, I had never seen you like that before. Also, I felt like it was my fault, since I was the one who wondered what the view would be like from up there…” Mingyu looked at him and felt his heart warm up with how Wonwoo genuinely looked upset, still blaming himself for it.

“You only mentioned it, but I was the one with the stupid idea to climb the tree.” Mingyu countered, trying to stop him from feeling guilty. “You were the smart one. You kept telling me to get down, because, of course, you knew that couldn’t end up well.”

“And, also, you drew all over my cast, later. Which made me draw a lot of attention at school. I became the cool guy and would tell a bunch of lies of how I broke my arm.” Mingyu added, with a chuckle, to make Wonwoo feel better about it. 

“Why do you sound so cheerful when you remember that day when you were the one who broke your arm and felt a lot of pain?” Wonwoo frowned at him, finding it odd, but still had a bit of a smile on his face.

“Because I was with you.” Mingyu shrugged, glancing at Wonwoo, the golden light of the sunset making his face glow while the day turned into night, his fringe flowing with the summer breeze that passed through them. God, he was stunning. Mingyu noticed Wonwoo’s cheeks flushed red with embarrassment at his answer and went on to explain it. “I wasn’t alone when I broke my arm, you kept trying to hide your crying and assure me that everything would be fine and that my parents would come soon. So, that made me feel ten times safer.”

Wonwoo nodded, biting on his lip, still a bit embarrassed as he looked down at the rock they were sitting on.

“And also, because, before I decided to climb the tree, we had talked and talked so much for almost an hour.” Mingyu continued. “Those were the times I enjoyed spending the most with you. Just talking. About our future, about movies and videogames, inside jokes, school, naming things on our bucket lists… It really made me feel like our friendship would last forever.” 

“It did.” Wonwoo affirmed, raising his head to look into Mingyu’s eyes, as if to tell him he was being serious. “Many years later, we’re back here again, aren't we? Together.”

They both stayed a few seconds in silence, Mingyu trying to think of what to say next, but then he realized there was really just one thing he needed to do. So, he just leaned forward and hugged Wonwoo tightly.

“Oh.” He heard Wonwoo giggle against his ear, returning the hug as he wrapped his arms around Mingyu’s waist. It started awkward, especially with Wonwoo’s stiff body, but then they both just eased into it. Mingyu took in the citric scent of Wonwoo’s perfume and rested his head on his shoulder.

“I really wanted to do this.” He murmured against Wonwoo’s shirt. “It’s been a long time since we hugged each other.”

Wonwoo tightened his embrace on Mingyu as well, before they separated after a couple of seconds. Mingyu still held onto Wonwoo’s hand, though, looking down at his pale and soft fingers, lightly caressing his knuckles with his thumb. His breath hitched, however, as he glanced up at Wonwoo’s soft gaze on him and realized he really, really wanted to kiss him.

Oh, fuck.

“Uhm…” Wonwoo started talking to break the awkward silence between them after their hug, but Mingyu took a while to get out of his trance and force his gaze from Wonwoo’s pink lips to his eyes, instead. “So, are you coming to the LGBTQ evening at Seungcheol’s bar tomorrow night?”

Realizing he was still holding Wonwoo’s hand, Mingyu quickly let go of it, cleaning the nervous sweat of his palms on his jeans.

“I, uhm…” He stuttered, trying to gather his thoughts. “I will. Yeah, of course.”

“It’ll be fun, you’ll see.” Wonwoo guaranteed him.

Drunk at a party next to Wonwoo, who Mingyu had just realized he still had a crush on? How could that work out?

☼

It was right after lunch and Mingyu was lying on his bed, looking at the ceiling, trying to figure out what he should wear for their night out at the bar that evening. However, he couldn’t even focus on the clothes he had brought with him, since his mind wouldn’t let go of the fact that his crush for Wonwoo was back and he didn’t know what to do about it. Should he let it go? Ignore it and see if it’ll pass? Should he act up on it? See if Wonwoo shares the same feelings? And if he does? What happens then? So many questions ran through his mind and Mingyu decided to do what was usually the best solution when these things happened to him: call Minghao. 

“Hey, buddy, how is it going?” Minghao picked up after ringing two times.

“What should I wear to a night out with my new-but-not-so-new crush?” Mingyu asked him right off the bat.

“Wow, okay, hold on.” Minghao replied, taken aback. “What happened? Didn’t you say you weren’t there to hook up with anybody?”

“Well, what should I do when my crush from ten years ago comes back with full force?” He said, brushing his hair out of his face.

“Oh my God, Wonwoo?!” Minghao exclaimed. Mingyu had talked to him about his childhood friend and teenage crush before.

“Yeah, he’s still cute and sweet and yesterday I had a whole sappy moment with him while we watched the sunset and I suddenly wanted to kiss him…” He sighed, pinching his nose, stressed out. “And I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it ever since.”

“Wow, that sounds like a movie scene…” Minghao commented. “Listen, Mingyu, I know you, you’re a very intense kinda guy. And that’s okay! That’s just who you are. But, maybe you’re only reminiscing on those feelings you used to have for Wonwoo back then? And not having new, stronger feelings for him now?”

“You think so?”

“I don’t know, could be. You may be confused.” He pointed out, calmly. “But, there’s also the possibility that you do feel this way about him.”

“Yeah and how do I figure that out?” Mingyu wondered.

“You could just see how things go at this night out you mentioned, if you still feel the same way about him, want to be closer to him, touch him, kiss him. And, also, see if there’s a chance he has feelings for you too.” Minghao explained. “You know exactly how to dress up for a crush, I trust you. Then, you gotta analyze the eyes, the glances he gives you. I’m always telling you this, but you never listen, always freaking out, wondering if the guy likes you back.” 

“And what if I do like him?” Mingyu asked him, with a shaky voice. “Or worse, what if he likes me back? What do we do, then? I don’t live here, I’ll go back in two months and I…”

“Mingyu, you’ll figure that out when the time comes.” Minghao advised him. “Focus on the present or you’ll forget to live the moment. Carpe diem or whatever.”

It took a while for those words to sink in Mingyu’s head, but it eventually did. 

“Alright.” He sighed, nodding as if Minghao was laying there with him, helping him with his romantic life as he’s been doing for years now. “Thanks, Hao.”

“You know I’m always here for you.” He told him, honesty in his voice. “And god, please let me know how it goes tomorrow, okay? Don’t leave me curious!”

“You got it.”

☼

It was a hot, summer evening, so Mingyu dressed up in a yellow floral shirt, with its short sleeves rolled up, so he could show off his biceps that he was really proud of, and a few buttons undone, showing off a bit of his chest. His shirt was french tucked into some light jeans that were slightly ripped on his thighs and he also had his hair neatly styled back with only a few strands hanging over his forehead. Mingyu looked hot as fuck and he was confident enough to admit it. He just wondered if someone else would notice it too.

Mingyu arrived at the bar only twenty minutes after the event was scheduled to begin, but when he got there, it was surprisingly filled with customers already. The people in this town were always oddly on time.

Right after coming in, Mingyu quickly spotted the large booth on the corner where Wonwoo, Hansol, Soonyoung, Chan and Jeonghan chatted loudly with each other. The upbeat music from the speakers was already loud, but they somehow spoke louder. While on their way to their table, Mingyu took a look around the place. 

The place had a relaxed atmosphere and the decoration wasn’t trendy or flashy, but it held its own against many top-tier bars Mingyu had seen back at Seoul. It felt a little quirky, with some sort of country vibe. They sat by the dark wood tables on the right side, close to the walls. From what Mingyu could see, on the left side, there was a big bar from where Seungkwan stood behind, shaking the drinks he was making. The bar stools weren’t so spaced apart, so it felt almost off-putting to get up and get a drink by the busy area, but the place wasn’t absolutely packed so it didn’t feel stuffy. The air-conditioning worked wonders, so even the space reserved for live music or performance with the dance floor in front of it felt inviting. 

Someone by the bar caught Mingyu’s attention waving his arms to the group, so as soon as he realized it was Seungcheol checking on a waiter beside Seungkwan, he opened a big smile and waved back. Seungkwan didn’t notice him, though, since he was serving a customer a pink and yellow drink.

“Hey, look who’s late!” Soonyoung exclaimed to Mingyu as he approached their booth. Mingyu hesitated when he noticed there was a spot vacant beside Wonwoo and another one beside Jeonghan.

“Well, it’s not my fault everyone’s so on time here in Sokdong.” Mingyu argued, choosing to sit beside Jeonghan, instead, exactly across from Wonwoo. The other smiled at him when they exchanged glances.

“So, when is Seokmin performing?” Mingyu asked, trying to look for Seokmin near the stage area, unsuccessfully.

“In about… An hour.” Chan responded, checking his clock. “He’s probably in the dressing room right now. It takes him, like, two hours to get ready and then another one just to warm up and get in character.” He rolled his eyes, but held a proud brother's smile on his lips. “We got here in the afternoon and of course I had to come, to help him carry all that shit he needs. So, I’ve been chatting with the guys for hours now.” Chan groaned, complaining. “We’ve run out of subjects to talk, so please give us some new material.”

“Wait, hold up.” Jeonghan interrupted Mingyu before he could say anything. “You can’t come in, start chatting and not order anything. You’ll get thirsty.” He pointed out, looking like he found the fact that Mingyu had no glass in front of him an outrage. Stretching his arm, he quickly caught his boyfriend’s attention. “Babe! A beer for Mingyu!”

“And later you gotta try Seungkwan’s drag drinks, they’re the best.” Soonyoung suggested. “Trust me, I’ve tried them all.”

“And he also got pretty hammered most of those times, so be careful.” Hansol reminded, raising his eyebrows to Mingyu as a warning.

They spent the next hour talking and laughing while Mingyu drank around three beers. Seungcheol would come and go a few times and massage Jeonghan’s shoulders or play with his hair from behind the booth while he talked to the other guys, before having to go deal with anything that needed him, since these nights were the busiest of the bar. The boys had explained to Mingyu that the hype was a mix of Seokmin doing some amazing performances and providing top-of-the-line entertainment. Besides, it was the most regular queer event they had in town.

“So, when they came up with it, everyone was curious and a bit judgy at first.” Soonyoung explained to Mingyu. “But, then word got around about how fun the event was and it soon became a hit. Of course, Seungkwan’s delicious drinks added to the hype, even more because he only serves these ones on queer nights.”

“Cheol told me one day that this event is one of the proudest achievements in his life.” Jeonghan told them while his eyes lingered on his boyfriend, who talked with a staff a few feet away from them, a small smile on Jeonghan’s lips. “I’m really proud of him for that too. We all are.”

“Here’s for representation.” Wonwoo brought his glass to the center, inviting them for a toast.

“Everyone, if I can have your attention, please.” Without them even noticing, Seungcheol had stepped on the stage, that was now lit up, and spoke into the mic. “It’s that time of the week again… And I was wondering if you were all ready, because she sure is!”

Some loud cheers resonated through the bar and people started to approach the area of the stage, Mingyu and the guys all quickly standing up and rushing along, so they could get a good view. Jeonghan carelessly elbowed everyone in front of them so their group could make it to the front of the stage.

“Alright, everyone, here she comes… Our dearest, Diamond K!” Seungcheol announced as the red curtains of the stage opened and Seokmin was shown in full drag, sitting on top of a large piano. He wore a tight sequin pink gown that went all the way to his white high heels and had a front slit over his left leg, which he proudly showed, crossing it on top of the other. His makeup was impeccably sharp and highlighted, almost making it hard to recognize Mingyu’s friend. His lips were tainted red, matching the flowing long locks of his wig that rested over his shoulder and back. Seokmin leaned on his left hand and looked at the crowd with a teasing smirk on his lips.

“Hello, everyone.” Diamond K greeted on the mic, a seductive tone to her voice. The confidence overflowed from her, from the way she moved, and anyone could feel she belonged on the stage.

Seungcheol took his position on the piano bench and began playing the first notes of Shallow from A Star Is Born.

Tell me somethin', girl. Are you happy in this modern world?

Beside Mingyu, Jeonghan squealed in excitement, whistling to him and causing Seungcheol to smile as he sang, clearly knowing who that whistle came from.

They both performed Shallow, Diamond K’s amazing vocals matching Lady Gaga’s perfectly. Mingyu was stunned with his friend’s incredible vocal range and how much control she seemed to have in her voice. Diamond K was definitely a star.

After the song ended, Diamond K gracefully hopped off the piano and strutted towards the mic support on the front of the stage while the crowd cheered her for the last song. 

“Miss Diamond, I love you!” Soonyoung’s loud scream could be heard atop of the cheers and Seokmin had to hold in his laughter and stay in character.

“Thank you, sweetie.” Diamond winked at Soonyoung. “Thank you all for coming. I hope you like this next one.”

All That Jazz from the musical Chicago started playing and Diamond K looked the sexiest she’d ever been, moving her hips side to side and caressing the microphone stand. The crowd went crazy. Once the beat of the song picked up, she suddenly ripped her gown right on her thighs, showing that it was actually a dress designed for costume change. With a lot more mobility, she began performing across the entire stage, displaying her amazing stage presence.

Mingyu looked to his side and saw how entertained Wonwoo was by her concert, his mouth hanging open. He realized Mingyu’s gaze on him and looked back, smiling.

“She’s amazing, isn’t she?” He leaned in to comment with Mingyu.

“She sure is! I underestimated how good the performance would be.” Mingyu told him against his ear so he could hear him better through the music.

“That’s why so many people come to see her, even from other towns close to Sokdong.” Wonwoo mentioned. “Seungcheol’s queer evening is very popular.”

Wonwoo turned his gaze back to the stage to watch Diamond’s performance as she began singing a Beyoncé song, but Mingyu just kept staring at him, his smile, perfect features and glowing skin under the lights from the stage shining on him. His friend was just a little sweaty and excited but somehow he looked absolutely dashing in his own eyes. Fuck, he was beautiful. And Mingyu could already feel himself getting a bit tipsy, even though the night hadn’t even properly started yet.

Diamond K’s concert went on for about an hour and it was very successful, since it received high praise by the end. She performed some quick stand-up routines that were actually pretty amusing, sang to many famous pop singers’ songs and even danced to some of their choreographies, which Mingyu made sure to record and post on his Instagram stories. After the concert ended, she went down the stage, but it was nearly impossible to approach her, since she was quickly crowded by people wanting to take pictures with her.

Jeonghan went to find his boyfriend and compliment him on his performance of Shallow, while Soonyoung, Chan and Hansol went back to the table. Mingyu, however, was pretty hyped and excited, so he wanted to stay at the dance floor, which was now clearing from the people going back to the bar or their tables after the concert was over.

“Hey, come on.” He took Wonwoo’s arm as the boy had turned to walk back to their booth. The speakers were playing a Rihanna song and Mingyu really felt like dancing. Most of all, he wanted to dance with Wonwoo. “Dance with me.”

“What?” Wonwoo chuckled, like he wasn’t serious.

“Come on…” Without even thinking, Mingyu took both of Wonwoo’s arms and put them on his hips, pulling him closer. The boy stumbled on his feet by the sudden movement and his cheeks immediately flushed red. Mingyu had to keep himself from smiling big at that cute reaction. God, he was so tipsy.

“Mingyu, you know I don’t dance.” Wonwoo looked up at Mingyu’s eyes, still kind of embarrassed, but without removing his arms from Mingyu’s hips, which started to move with the song. “In all of these years you’ve known me, have you ever seen me dance?” He asked, his lips quirked upwards.

“I wish I had, it would’ve been very funny.” Mingyu giggled. “I’ll teach you some moves in the future.” He winked, jokingly. “In the meantime, though, you can just keep me company.”

They looked at each other for a few seconds without saying anything, only their feet slowly swaying together. They weren’t even dancing to the beat of the song, but they didn’t seem to mind. Wonwoo gave Mingyu a half smile before he spoke softly.

“That I can do.”

A million thoughts started to run through Mingyu’s inebriated mind while they casually talked about the concert, Wonwoo’s arm lazily hanging on Mingyu’s waist. He tried to think like Minghao always advised him, to pay attention to the glances, but Wonwoo was looking at him the way he always did, right? And they were talking face to face, how could he not look at Mingyu? How exactly did this work? How could a look be any different?

“Oh, I love this song.” Wonwoo closed his eyes and smiled when Bloom by Troye Sivan started playing.

“Then, you gotta move to it, hyung. Come on.” Mingyu took Wonwoo’s arms in his hands and raised them above their heads. Wonwoo opened his eyes and got shy again, trying to put his arms back down, but Mingyu kept holding them up and trying to make Wonwoo move with him to the rhythm of the song. Wonwoo refused, so Mingyu simply began tickling him under his armpits, which made the boy bend his entire body and laugh out loud.

“Mingyu, stop! Oh my god.” He tried to beg between his laughs and Mingyu chuckled along with him, finding Wonwoo so damn cute. “People are staring, come on!” He pleaded, looking at the people around them on the dance floor. It wasn’t even that crowded and the ones there were focused on each other, couples making out and friends who swayed to the music with drinks in their hands.

“Only if you dance with me!” Mingyu said, making Wonwoo roll his eyes and finally give up, loosening his body. Mingyu grinned from ear to ear and took Wonwoo’s hands in his. As the chorus of the song came up, the two of them began jumping up and down in full excitement screaming the lyrics of the song to each other.

(Yeah, I bloom) I bloom just for you  
(I bloom) just for you  
(Yeah, I bloom) I bloom just for you  
(I bloom) just for you  
Come on, baby, play me like a love song  
Every time it comes on  
I get this sweet desire  
(Yeah, I bloom) I bloom just for you  
(I bloom) just for you

They stopped jumping after the chorus was over, breathing heavily, but still moving their bodies to the song with big smiles on their faces. Wonwoo shook his head, giggling at the both of them and it was like Mingyu’s heart did a somersault inside his chest. Yeah, he was in this. He was in deep.

Now it’s the perfect season  
Yeah, let’s go for it this time  
We’re dancing with the trees and  
I’ve waited my whole life  
It’s true, baby  
I been saving this for you, baby

Suddenly the lyrics to the song started to make a whole lot of sense to Mingyu, like it described his entire situation. Funny how Mingyu didn’t really believe in Minghao when he told him about being able to completely understand love songs’ lyrics when you’re in love. Well, he did now.

Mingyu began to feel short of breath all of a sudden, so he had to take his mind off of this somehow.

“Uhm, I just realized I haven’t tried Seungkwan’s drinks yet.” He told Wonwoo, raising his voice to be heard over the song. “I guess I’ll head to the bar.”

“Oh, okay, I’ll go with you. I’ll have my favorite one, it’s called Latrice Royale.” Wonwoo said as they walked towards the bar. At Mingyu’s confused look, he shrugged. “Don’t even ask me. It’s the green one. God knows what he puts in those drinks.”

The bar was crowded with everyone ordering Seungkwan’s special drag queen drinks that could only be acquired at these events. Mingyu had to make his way through a few people to finally get to the front of the bar, Wonwoo right behind him. Seungkwan had other two bartenders helping him, but it was still hard to make so many orders at once. When he handed a rainbow drink to a woman beside Mingyu, he finally noticed his two friends, sighing in relief to see some familiar faces in the midst of the chaos.

“I swear I’m gonna freak out.” He told Mingyu, taking a deep breath. “Tonight’s been one of the crowdest nights ever. Thank god I’m ending my shift in fifteen minutes.” He said, relieved. “So, what are you two having?”

“It’s my first time. I’ll have whatever the inventor suggests me.” Mingyu answered, lifting Seungkwan’s ego.

“You got it.” He winked at Mingyu, confident.

“I’ll have the usual.” Wonwoo said, moving a bit to the side as someone cleared the space beside Mingyu. Another person passing behind them, however, accidentally pushed Wonwoo, which made him stumble on Mingyu, his hand slipping to Mingyu’s waist to support himself and prevent him from falling.

“Sorry. It’s a little bit crowded here.” He apologized to Mingyu, but still didn’t move, their bodies very close to each other.

“It’s okay.” Mingyu bit on his bottom lip. If he wanted to see if Wonwoo also had feelings for him, he needed to take things further, right? He had to flirt a little bit. So, Mingyu put an arm over Wonwoo’s shoulders, leaning in close to his ear. “Don’t you think it’s warm in here?”

Wonwoo was kind of speechless, his mouth closing and opening, without any words coming out. Mingyu just kept staring at him, at how handsome he was and how he just wanted to kiss him…

“Hello-o? Earth to Mingyu and Wonwoo!” They snapped out of it once they heard Seungkwan from the other side of the bar, green and purple drinks in hand. “Your drinks are ready!”

Getting their glasses, the boys made their way back to their booth, Mingyu sitting beside Jeonghan and Wonwoo beside him.

“Hey! I was wondering where you two were!” Soonyoung exclaimed once they got back. “Ooh Mingyu, it seems like you’re drinking the Alyssa Edwards one!” He pointed at Mingyu’s purple drink, acting like a proper conneuseir of Seungkwan’s drinks. “I think this one might be the strongest, but also makes you want more, you know? Definitely one of the most popular ones, just like the queen Alyssa.” At Hansol’s confused expression, Soonyoung explained. “Oh, I’ve watched all of the seasons of Rupaul’s Drag Race with Seokmin and Seungkwan.”

Under his friends’ expectant eyes, Mingyu was kind of scared to try the drink, even more after Soonyoung’s description. Taking the rainbow straw in his fingers, he took a sip and immediately did an ugly face. There was definitely a good amount of gin in that drink, but it was perfectly mixed with some berry flavors, which indeed made Mingyu want to take another sip, like Soonyoung had mentioned.

“Just… Be careful, don’t drink it too fast.” Hansol advised him. “Seungkwan loves to see everyone get wasted, just like his own self.”

Mingyu nodded, wary of the glass in his hands. Everyone started mingling in their own conversations and he felt a light pull on his shirt by Jeonghan, trying to catch his attention.

“So…” He began, with a teasing expression and a smirk on his face, whispering close to Mingyu’s ear, so the others wouldn’t listen. “I saw you and Wonwoo at the dance floor. What was that all about?”

“We were dancing.” Mingyu shrugged, trying to seem unbothered.

“Oh, really?” Jeonghan looked at Mingyu like there was no playing him, even if you tried hard enough. “His hands on your waist? The both of you looking fondly at each other?”

“Did we- Fondly?” Mingyu asked, suddenly not being able to form a coherent phrase and defend himself.

“You two are cute.” Jeonghan told him, honestly. “And I think you should totally go for it, trust me.”

“No, I’m not… We’re not…” Mingyu tried really hard to argue, but was soon interrupted by the elegant Diamond K arriving at the table, wig and all.

“Oh my god, I’m so tired!” Seokmin exclaimed loudly in his regular voice and threw himself on the seat beside Soonyoung. Suddenly, he sounded like their friend again.

Soonyoung shared his orange drink with him and Seokmin took a long sip between his glittery red lips.

“You were so, so great up there, seriously.” Mingyu told him, sincerely. “I had never seen anything like it and you blew my mind.”

“Thanks, Mingyu.” Seokmin smiled, resting his head on the back of his seat. “Today was one of the most tiring shows, but it was worth it. And I even got Cheol’s help.”

“It was so cute, I recorded and took a bunch of photos. He had only told me he was practicing hard for something, but didn’t tell me what. Very mysterious.” Jeonghan commented, proudly. “Oh! And I saw the amount of people wanting to take pictures with you at the end. You’re very famous now, Diamond K.”

“Right?! I have fans, can you believe that?!” Seokmin exclaimed, looking very happy. “And there’s more! Just now this guy came to talk to me and he offered me a pictorial at a magazine?!” He sounded incredulous, while everybody cheered in excitement. “It’s not a big magazine, not very well known either, but still… It’s a gig, you know. I had never imagined I’d be recognized as a proper drag queen, before. It all started with just me having fun, but now it’s starting to feel like something real… Wow.” Seokmin sighed and leaned back on his seat, in awe.

“Ahh, we’re so happy for you!” Soonyoung hugged him tight and everyone else cheered in agreement.

“You can ask Mingyu to give you some modeling tips.” Wonwoo suggested, looking at Mingyu to see if he was okay with it.

“Yeah, I’d totally do it. No problem at all.” 

“That’s actually a good idea.” Seokmin agreed, grinning from ear to ear. “God, I’m so happy! You know what? Shots for everybody on me!”

They all cheered and Seungcheol, along with Seungkwan, who had finally ended his shift, brought them the tequila shots, making a toast to Diamond K’s future. Mingyu was certain that mixing different types of alcohol would not do him any good by the end of the night, but he drank it anyway.

The guys talked about Seokmin’s performance and he explained to them how he sewed his own dress, also promising to do Mingyu’s drag makeup one day, since he had a “perfect crease” for fun eyeshadow looks.

“He did it on me once and, trust me, you’ll want to go out in full drag after your makeup is done or at least take some pictures.” Seungkwan warned Mingyu.

“Yeah, I think I’ll stick to taking some pictures.” He giggled.

“Okay so, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll… Uhm, get something I just remembered I left at the bar.” Seungkwan stood up, clearly coming up with an excuse. He glared at Hansol and left.

“I’ll go to the bathroom.” Hansol excused himself right after, the others getting up so he could leave his place in the middle of the booth.

“Why do you two even bother lying at this point? We all know what you’re gonna do.” Seokmin accused them with a knowing smile, receiving a glare from Hansol before the boy turned back and left the same way Seungkwan went.

The group went back to talking and Mingyu realized his glass was almost empty, his Alyssa Edwards drink nearly gone. Mingyu was feeling pretty drunk and a bit drowsy, as well, the world spinning from time to time. Without even realizing what he was doing, he leaned his head on Wonwoo’s shoulder, the other boy giggling at how defeated Mingyu looked.

“I’m sleepy.” Mingyu murmured.

“Well, you drank beer, a shot of tequila and a full glass of Seungkwan’s strongest drink. There’s only so much your body can take.” Wonwoo told him. “I always pick the green one because it’s the lightest of them all, even though that’s basically worth nothing.”

“Do you want me to leave your shoulder?” Mingyu moved his head so he could be looking up at Wonwoo. “I could, but I’m pretty sure I’ll get dizzy once I lift my head up.”

“No, it’s okay. You can stay there.” Wonwoo smiled at him and there it was. That look Minghao was talking about. The fond eyes and soft smile, it was different from how Wonwoo usually looked at him. That was definitely it.

Mingyu’s heart almost stopped inside his chest as he felt Wonwoo’s hand on his thigh, not only over his jeans, but his thumb lightly caressing Mingyu’s bare skin under the rips of his pants. His breath hitched and he smiled back at him, putting his hand over Wonwoo’s, his finger tracing random patterns on his skin. Their exchanged glares, however, were interrupted by Soonyoung as he called Wonwoo to ask him about something. Not wanting to let that moment go, though, Mingyu wrapped his hands around Wonwoo’s arm and nuzzled closer to him. The scene definitely looked a bit odd to their friends, since they’d never seen Mingyu and Wonwoo be this intimate to each other. Mingyu couldn’t care less, even though Jeonghan was nudging him with his feet under the table and giving him teasing smirks.

Mingyu sighed, his mind completely focused on Wonwoo’s thumb caressing his thigh as he casually talked to Soonyoung, that fond smile he had given him minutes before still stuck on his mind. Did that mean Wonwoo also didn’t see him as only a friend? Or was he used to casual touches on friends and such so it wasn’t a big deal? Could he possibly have a crush on Mingyu? They had been hanging out a lot lately, back to being friends, and they would eventually lean their arm on each other’s shoulder, but nothing intimate like this. Maybe the alcohol made them bolder and careless… God knew how much Mingyu wanted to just kiss Wonwoo and see if this was really it, if he liked Mingyu back. There was, of course, a bunch of implications that simply kissing Wonwoo would bring him, but suddenly… Mingyu couldn’t think of any of them. Should he just do it?

“Hey.” He lifted up his head in an impulse, regretting immediately after, since the whole world started spinning. He held onto the table for support and Wonwoo noticed he was a bit dizzy.

“Are you okay?” He held Mingyu by his shoulders, frowning.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Mingyu blinked several times, feeling that his head had finally stopped spinning. “Can we go outside for a bit? Talk?”

“Talk?” Wonwoo raised his eyebrows, a little surprised. “Uhm, yeah, okay.”

They got up from their table without drawing attention, since the other boys were busy chatting with each other and downing shots.

Wonwoo followed Mingyu towards the exit and then outside, coming out for fresh air. It was past midnight already, so the street was empty and quiet, only a motorbike passing by at that time.

“Oh, it’s kind of chilly.” Wonwoo commented, leaning against the brick wall of the bar, the light from a yellow lamp just a few steps from them, illuminating his skin.

“Yeah, it was getting a bit stuffy in there, I needed some air.” Mingyu leaned against the wall as well without taking his eyes off Wonwoo, so many things running through his head and yet, only one thought remained. Could he do it?

“So… You wanted to talk to me?” Wonwoo turned his head to him as well.

Mingyu looked at him, nodding his head but not moving or saying anything for a few seconds. When Wonwoo opened his mouth to speak, though, Mingyu leaned forward and embraced him. His arms went around Wonwoo’s waist and held him tight, his face buried in the crook of his neck. Caught by surprise, Wonwoo took a while, but hugged him back, his palms plastered on Mingyu’s large back.

Mingyu stayed in the same position for a few seconds, breathing in Wonwoo’s perfume, until he began to slowly move out of the embrace, his hands cupping Wonwoo’s hips. With his thumb, he started to draw circles on Wonwoo’s bare skin, underneath his shirt. Hearing a small sigh coming from Wonwoo against his ear, he took that as a sign to go on, tightening his hold onto Wonwoo’s hips as his lips lightly brushed against the skin on his neck. He gave it a few pecks and went up to his jawline, tracing it with his lips. When he got near Wonwoo’s lips, the only sound that could be heard was of their heavy breaths, faces so close to each other they could smell the alcohol scent from their mouths. Mingyu was eager to taste it, though. Opening his eyes, he looked at Wonwoo who stared heavily at him, dark eyes, lips slightly parted and chest rising up and down in a quick pace.

“Mingyu…”

“Yeah?” Mingyu switched his gaze from Wonwoo’s lips to his eyes. Wonwoo suddenly looked uncertain, a frown between his brows. Mingyu’s hands stopped caressing Wonwoo’s skin and fell on the sides of his body. Fuck. He really did that.

“Listen, I don’t think we should…” Wonwoo began explaining in a low voice, but he didn’t need to say any more. Mingyu stepped back and almost tripped, feeling dizzy again.

He let out a laugh with no humor to its sound, running his hand through his hair and trying to catch his breath, leaving the daze he was just in.

“Fuck, you don’t… And I did this…” He shook his head, trying to form a sentence that made sense. “I’m so sorry, I should’ve known you don’t… I don’t know what got into me, I just… Fuck.” He exhaled loudly, annoyed at himself.

“Wait, wait, Mingyu. Don’t… Don’t just assume things, okay?” Wonwoo leaned forward and grabbed Mingyu’s arms, steadying the boy who would probably trip and fall anytime soon. “Look at me.” Mingyu lifted up his head and looked at Wonwoo. “I want it. I want to kiss you too.”

“You do?” Mingyu widened his eyes so big that it made Wonwoo snort mid-laughter.

“I do.” He told him, honestly. “But, we’re both really drunk right now and that’s not… It’s not how I wanted it to be.” Wonwoo took Mingyu’s hands in his, caressing his knuckles with his thumb. “Do you understand?”

“I guess…?” He looked confused, nothing making much sense in Mingyu’s brain that felt like it had turned into goo with how drunk he was.

“I don’t want to kiss my first crush and childhood best friend like this.” Wonwoo gave him a sad smile.

“But you do want to kiss me? I’m not imagining things?” Mingyu asked, just to be sure.

“I do want to kiss you.” Wonwoo confirmed, giggling.

“Yes!” Mingyu jumped in celebration, but ended up losing his balance and almost falling on the sidewalk, the lamp post being the only thing keeping him standing.

“Mingyu!” Wonwoo ran towards him, holding him so he wouldn’t fall. “God, why are you so weak with alcohol?”

“Shut up, I’m not…” Mingyu was about to argue, but suddenly felt something bubbling up in his stomach, turned to the side and threw up all over the sidewalk. Wonwoo held him tight until he had stopped barfing and was able to stand up straight, leaning back against the lamp post and cleaning his mouth with a tissue he had in his pocket.

“Listen, I swear I wasn’t about to throw up in your mouth.” He spoke, very seriously, pointing at Wonwoo to get his message clear.

“Well, there’s no way of knowing that.” Wonwoo bantered.

“I swear.” Mingyu insisted.

“Yeah, yeah, come on, let’s go back inside, say goodbye to the guys, so I can take you home.” Wonwoo dragged him by his hips, looking very amused at the situation.

“But I don’t wanna go back home! I wanna stay with you!” He whined, looking like a child. Wonwoo could only laugh and support him with Mingyu’s arm over his shoulder.

“Hey guys.” Wonwoo basically had to drag Mingyu with him back to their booth, his hand around the other’s waist. “I think we’ll head off now. I’ll drop Mingyu home, he already threw up outside...”

“And what were you two doing outside?” Jeonghan smirked at them.

“We-” Wonwoo couldn’t even begin to try to come up with something, since Seungkwan almost knocked him and Mingyu over as he passed, throwing himself on the seat.

Everybody stared at their friend as he picked up two of the shots left on the table and downed them, running his hand through his hair and leaning back against his seat. All of a sudden, his expression changed and his lips started quivering, tears running down his cheeks. Under everyone’s confusing eyes, Seungkwan just put his hands on his face and cried harder.

“Hey, hey. What’s going on?” Seokmin asked, worried, trying to reach out to him from across the table.

When Seungkwan didn’t answer, Jeonghan just pulled him closer and hugged him tight, trying to comfort his crying friend.

“I’m so stupid, this is all so stupid…” He leaned his elbows on the table as he tried to dry his tears. His face was all red, eyes swollen.

“Is it about… You and Hansol?” Soonyoung asked, carefully.

“He…” Seungkwan sniffed, looking up and taking a deep breath so he could stop himself from crying. “He doesn’t want anything serious.” He explained. “We were making out in the bathroom and I told him I wish we could actually date and not just hook up whenever we’re drunk, when we clearly have feelings for each other.”

There was a moment of silence between the group, all of them listening intently as Seungkwan finally talked about what was going on between him and Hansol.

“But then, he… He started stuttering and saying he liked what we were doing, that he just enjoys going with the flow, that it puts less pressure on things.” Seungkwan told them, exhaling, clearly annoyed.

“And what did you say?” Jeonghan asked him and Seungkwan shrugged, even though his face showed how upset he clearly was.

“I tried to reason with him about how being like this doesn’t do us any good, but he just wouldn’t listen. He’s… He’s scared.” He explained. “So, I told him I don’t know if I can keep doing this anymore… And then he left.”

“Wow…” Seungcheol murmured under his breath. That was definitely some drama they weren’t expecting.

“Anyway, now I just need to get wasted.” Seungkwan tried to force a smile. “Can anyone go to the bar with me?” Both Soonyoung and Seokmin followed him close behind, worried about their friend.

“See? There’s no reason to go.” Mingyu told Wonwoo with a slurred speech, while still supporting himself on the other. “Seungkwan needs us.”

“Oh no.” Wonwoo pulled Mingyu back as the other tried to sit down. “At this state you can’t do Seungkwan any good. Plus, he has five of his friends here with him.”

“Yeah, Mingyu, I think it’s best if you go home.” Seungcheol suggested. “We got it under control with Seungkwan, don’t worry. And Wonwoo, take care of him.”

“Oh, he will…” Jeonghan murmured under his breath, but they could still hear it, so Wonwoo gave him a glare before turning around to pay and leave.

☼

“Fuck!” Mingyu exclaimed when he stepped on a squeaky toy from his little sister on the living room floor, making a loud sound in the middle of the night.

“Shush, Mingyu!” Wonwoo whispered to him, afraid Mingyu’s family would wake up and see him there.

He supported Mingyu once the other leaned all his weight on him as they went up the stairs to Mingyu’s bedroom. Getting there, Mingyu made a beeline towards his bed as soon as they opened the door, throwing himself on his back.

“Welcome to my bedroom.” Mingyu joked, giggling. He raised his arms and motioned for Wonwoo to move closer. “Come on, lay here with me.”

“Uh… Actually, I think I’ll get going.” Wonwoo replied, still standing awkwardly next to Mingyu’s closet.

“What? No! It’s really late, you can’t go back home alone.” Mingyu argued, a big frown between his brows. But, as hard as he tried to look serious, he knew his drunk state would probably make him look cute. “You can stay here. I’ll sleep on the couch. Don’t worry, I won’t bite you.” He joked once again, smirking.

Wonwoo giggled, looking down and nervously playing with the hem of his shirt.

“Sokdong is much safer than Seoul, Mingyu. It’s okay. I walk back home alone all the time. Sleep well, okay?” He told Mingyu, turning to leave.

“Wait!” Mingyu stopped him, his hands still in the air, trying to reach Wonwoo. “Can you help me take off my jeans, please?”

“I…” Wonwoo’s cheeks flushed almost immediately.

“Come on, you’ve seen me in my underwear many times.” Mingyu said, already working on unbuttoning his jeans.

“Well, it was… Different. Back then.” Wonwoo argued, but still went closer and leaned down, helping Mingyu by pulling off his jeans. His entire face was red and Mingyu had to contain himself from giggling and pulling Wonwoo to bed with him.

Wonwoo pulled the covers from underneath Mingyu and put it over him, getting a small smile from the other.

“I’ll go now.”

“Okay, but text me when you get home.” Mingyu murmured, nuzzling against his pillow and closing his eyes. “Even though I’ll probably be already asleep.”

Mingyu must’ve fallen asleep instantly, since he didn’t even hear the door closing, his mind already lost in the deep sleep and nice dreams he was about to have.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo what did you think? Things are finally looking up for these two and I'm so so excited for it!! Hope you guys are too :)  
> By the way, the first scene where they go to their old lookout and reminisce on the day Mingyu broke his arm is inspired by the song For Forever from the broadway musical Dear Evan Hansen (i'm a big musical theatre nerd so if anyone wants to talk to me about it, you're more than invited haha). Here's a cute animated [video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiNe0L6kyto) of the song if you guys wanna listen to it, I find it really beautiful.
> 
> As always, you can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/chankgyunie).


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here I am back with another chapter! this one took me a little longer to update and i'm sorry about that but things have been kind of hectic lately with work and stuff and i didn't have time to write chapter 7 (i always like to post a chapter whenever i have the next one ready maybe it's a capricorn thing idk) but here it is. also, i'm thinking this fic might be around 10 chapters long ?? idk maybe more maybe less. and i'd like to once again thank my girl juliana for working with me on this fic, she's my beta, she plots great scenarios, is basically my co-writer and is also the one responsible for the edits of the fic i post on [twitter](https://twitter.com/chankgyunie/status/1259998074367356931). anyway, enough talking, have a good read :)

Mingyu woke up with the bright light of the sun creeping through his curtains and shining on his face, making his eyes hurt. He groaned while putting a pillow on top of his head but wasn’t able to fall asleep again because of his throbbing headache. It took him about five minutes to get the courage to leave from underneath his pillow and barely open his eyes, looking at the clock on his nightstand. 

He almost jumped realizing it was nearly noon, but as soon as he sat up in his bed, Mingyu’s head hurt so much he had to shut his eyes and rub his temples in a desperate attempt to make it feel any better. From the corner of his eye, however, Mingyu spotted a glass of water and some aspirins on his nightstand. He didn’t even need a note to know who left it there.

The thought of Wonwoo brought back bits and pieces of the night before, causing his head to pain him even more. Did he really almost kiss Wonwoo?!

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.” He swallowed the painkiller and quickly checked his phone to see if he had any messages. He had texts from Jeonghan, Minghao, Wonwoo and about a hundred in their group chat.

Mingyu’s eyes quickly scanned his notifications, but suddenly couldn’t focus on anything other than Wonwoo’s messages.

[Wonwoo, 2:27 am]  
Hey, I just got home  
You’re probably asleep but you told me to let you know, so…

[Wonwoo, 2:32 am]  
Let me know how you’re feeling when you wake up  
Sleep tight 

Mingyu caught himself smiling after those simple texts, noticing how Wonwoo had sent two other messages after a few minutes of the first ones, only to wish Mingyu a good night of sleep. Did he hesitate in showing he worried about him? Mingyu sighed, looking at his phone. He was really into this boy.

[Mingyu, 11:40 am]  
morning :D

[Wonwoo, 11:42 am]  
Don’t you mean “afternoon”?

[Mingyu, 11:42 am]  
well the point is i’m up !  
had a good night of sleep tho i woke up feeling like my head was gonna explode  
but u know  
the usual  
thank u for the aspirins tho ;)

[Wonwoo, 11:50 am]  
Wait, how do you know that was me?

[Mingyu, 11:50 am]  
bc my stepmom doesn’t enter my bedroom when my door’s shut and i know u care abt me so…

[Wonwoo, 11:53 am]  
Well

Mingyu laughed out loud watching the “Wonwoo is typing…” message on his screen for about three minutes only for him to say “Well” and then nothing more. 

[Mingyu, 11:54 am]  
are you at work rn?

[Wonwoo, 11:54 am]  
Unfortunately, yes

[Mingyu, 11:55 am]  
how tf r u not hungover??

[Wonwoo, 11:56 am]  
I woke up feeling my mouth pretty dry this morning, but other than that I’m fine  
Of course, I didn’t go crazy mixing alcohols like you did last night

[Mingyu, 11:56 am]  
i only did it bc i actually do know my limits and i knew if smth happened i had u guys to take care of me

Once again, Wonwoo paused for a little while, thinking about his words for a few minutes.

[Wonwoo, 11:59 am]  
Still  
You should be careful

Mingyu, then, took a deep breath and prepared himself to talk about the elephant in the room.

[Mingyu, 12:02 am]  
so  
last night

[Wonwoo, 12:04 am]  
Yes?

[Mingyu, 12:04 am]  
did i dream abt it or

[Wonwoo, 12:05 am]  
Or?

Mingyu sighed loudly, thinking of how exactly he should address this. What if his mind played tricks on him and nothing actually happened between the two of them? Or what if it did, but Wonwoo had rejected him and his drunken self had decided to forget about that part entirely and make him believe Wonwoo was into him too? His head hurt.

[Mingyu, 12:07 am]  
or did we almost kiss last night

Well, it was better straight up saying it than being mysterious about it. It took Wonwoo five minutes to answer, though, which almost drove Mingyu insane.

[Wonwoo, 12:12 pm]  
You didn’t dream about it

[Mingyu, 12:12 pm]  
and u said u wanted it??

[Wonwoo, 12:15 pm]  
I did

“AH!” Mingyu let out a yelp and quickly put his hand over his mouth, preventing him from yelling even more. Jumping up and down on his bed and shaking his legs in the air with a huge smile plastered on his face, he was feeling like a teenager with a crush. He held off, though, because his head started feeling dizzy with the sudden movements.

“Mingyu? Are you up?” He heard Mingjun’s gentle voice behind the door, knocking softly. “Is everything okay?”

“Uh, yes. It is. I just hit my foot.” Mingyu came up with an excuse.

“Are you having lunch with us? It’s almost ready.”

“Yeah, I’ll be right there!” He answered back and heard her footsteps going downstairs.

Mingyu reread Wonwoo’s message to see if he wasn’t seeing things. Smirking, he sent the next text. God, the flirting phase was the best in any relationship.

[Mingyu, 12:20 pm]  
then we gotta do smth abt that ;)

[Wonwoo, 12:21 pm]  
Yeah, I think we do  
Hey, listen, they need me in the kitchen right now  
I’ll talk to you later, okay?

[Mingyu, 12:21 pm]  
ok  
have a good day at work :*

[Wonwoo, 12:21 pm]  
Thanks  
Make sure to take another aspirin later if you still got a headache, okay?

[Mingyu, 12:22 pm]  
thanks mom

[Wonwoo, 12:22 pm]  
¬¬

[Mingyu, 12:23 pm]  
aww cute! you’re using emojis!

[Wonwoo, 12:23 pm]  
:P

Mingyu sighed loudly and let his head fall against the headboard, looking up at the ceiling. This was really it. Mingyu and Wonwoo were both into each other and anything could happen from now on. One thing Mingyu absolutely loved when it came to dating or hooking up with someone was this rush and adrenaline that all the flirting, looks and small touches gave him. And with Wonwoo, it felt like all of those feelings hit him even more intensely.

He had almost forgotten about his headache, clearly feeling better after his talk with Wonwoo, when the loud ringing of his phone made him jump and the pain hit him all over again. It was Minghao. His best friend was a big advocate of calling rather than messaging, he kept saying texts weren’t able to deliver the person’s real emotions.

“Hey.”

“Mingyu! My god, did you just wake up?” He asked, his voice, then, going down an octave. “Wait. Is Wonwoo there?”

“What? No!” Mingyu frowned..

“Well, how should I know?” Mingyu could almost see Minghao shrugging, nonchalantly. “So, how did it go last night?”

“Hm, let’s see.” He gathered all of the blurred memories in his head, while massaging his temples. “I got pretty wasted, danced with Wonwoo, dragged him out of the bar, almost kissed him and then proceeded to throw up on the sidewalk while he held me tight.”

“Wait… You almost kissed him?! Why almost?” Minghao raised his voice a bit, intrigued.

“He said he didn’t want to kiss me for the first time while drunk.” Mingyu smiled when he heard Minghao’s gasp on the other side of the line. “And then this morning I texted him and asked if he had really said that and he said he did. That he wants to kiss me.” He had to hold his pillow tightly against his chest to prevent him from squealing, a grin from ear to ear on his face.

“Fuck Mingyu, you’re both into each other…” Minghao commented, like he couldn’t believe it either. “Now all you have to do is go get him.”

“I’m kinda nervous…?” Mingyu admitted to his friend. “I don’t know, I never expected he would like me back and… With Wonwoo is different, you know? It’s not as easy as flirting with random guys at a club. He’s… He’s Wonwoo.” He emphasized, fiddling with the ends of his sheets. Mingyu couldn’t explain why he felt this anxious and inexperienced when it came to flirting with Wonwoo.

He also didn’t want to rush anything. A few weeks before, Mingyu and Wonwoo didn’t even talk to each other, miles apart and thinking they would forever be just acquaintances, who used to be best friends, but lost contact with one another. Then, Mingyu caught himself back into his old life, reconnecting with his town and, most importantly, Wonwoo. And, all of a sudden, he was also back with his old crush, hitting him harder than he could imagine. Mingyu was scared that things would pass by really fast, giving he only had a little over a month left in Sokdong. He didn’t even want to think about leaving, actually. So, that’s why he decided to focus on this thing with Wonwoo, whatever it was, and enjoy it as much as he could.

“I get it. He’s special.” Minghao told him and Mingyu could hear his smile in his voice. “I’m rooting for you, Mingyu. We all are.” Mingyu smiled with the words, he missed his friends a lot. “Also, I watched your Insta stories from last night and I think I caught a glimpse of Wonwoo in some of them. He’s hot, huh?”

“He is…” Mingyu sighed, laughing at his own pathetic crush.

He asked Minghao to catch him up with how things were going back in Seoul and was happy to hear everything was okay, nothing out of the ordinary. 

For the rest of the day, Mingyu was trying to distract himself with social media, picking up his sister from school and doing some chores, but all of that didn’t stop him from wondering if he should text Wonwoo or not. He really wanted to see the guy, but didn’t know if he’d be annoying and insistent on it.

“Fuck it.” He murmured to himself, unlocking the phone he had been twirling on his hand while trying to make a decision, lying on the couch. Hayoung looked at him from where she was sitting, doing her homework on the little kid table in the living room, a smirk on her lips. “You’re gonna pretend you didn’t hear that.” Mingyu pointed at her and the little girl made a zipping motion across her mouth.

[Mingyu, 6:07 pm]  
heyy  
so  
i was wondering  
do u wanna go out w me?  
i can pick u up tonight and we could go to the park or smth

He sent the message without even thinking, before he could regret it, and quickly threw his phone away between the cushions, trying to focus on the movie on the TV.

“You look weird.” Hayoung commented, observing him while she tapped her pencil on her chin.

Mingyu raised his eyebrows at her. Fuck, he must’ve been really fidgety if even his sister could tell.

“I-I’m not.. Weird…” He tried to come up with an excuse, but his mind was blank. “Focus on your homework, little lady.”

He looked back at the TV, but nothing on the screen could catch his attention. All of a sudden, his phone vibrated between his legs and he jumped on his seat, startled. It took him a few seconds to finally find the phone between so many cushions.

[Wonwoo, 6:12 pm]  
Hey  
Sorry, I’m super busy today. Didn’t even leave the restaurant

Mingyu felt himself deflate a bit, a little bummed out.

[Mingyu, 6:13 pm]  
oh

[Wonwoo, 6:13 pm]  
But hey  
You’re going to the beach festival tomorrow night, right?

Mingyu remembered the other guys commenting about it, but had completely forgotten about the date. It was basically a summer fair that the entire town participated and anxiously waited for all year, one of Sokdong’s biggest events.

[Mingyu, 6:14 pm]  
yeah of course  
the whole town’s going, right?

[Wonwoo, 6:14pm]  
Right  
I’m going too, so  
Maybe we can take some time for ourselves

Mingyu bit down on the big smile plastering his face, excitement making his heart beat faster.

[Mingyu, 6:15 pm]  
i’d like that :)

☼

“Oppa! You’re coming with me to play games at the fair today, right?” Hayoung excitedly asked Mingyu, pulling him towards the first floor with her tiny little hands after waking him up by jumping on his bed. “There’s lots of plushies to win and a merry-go-round!”

“Really?!” Mingyu widened his eyes, actually surprised at this festival, which wasn’t a town tradition when he lived there. “Of course I’ll go with you, we’ll have loads of fun.”

It was still noon and Hayoung was already jumping up and down around the house with excitement for the fair, clearly one of her favorite events of the year. Mingyu wasn’t much different, though, nervously biting his nails all day long with the thought of meeting Wonwoo later that evening.

“Calm down, we’ll get lunch first, finish your school project and only head to the beach at around 4 pm.” Mingjun told Hayoung as she handed her a bowl of the bibimbap they were having for lunch.

“Why can’t we go already, mommy?” Hayoung insisted, pouting. 

“Because the fair starts at 2 and if we go too early you’ll get tired really soon, won’t you pumpkin?” Mingyu’s dad raised his eyebrows at his sister, who acknowledged it, slowly nodding in agreement. “If we get there at 4, you’ll be able to enjoy the whole day and we’ll only leave later in the evening. Alright?”

“Alright.” She nodded vehemently, understanding.

“Wow, you’re so understanding.” Mingyu ruffled her hair, but got a scream in return.

“You can’t mess up my hair! I need it to be perfect for my friends to see!” She exclaimed, making Mingyu show her that he was keeping his hands for himself.

In the end, Hayoung asked Mingyu if he could braid her hair for the fair and, even though Mingyu had no idea how to do that, Mingjun assured him she would help and he would do just fine. He ended up doing a not so terrible job and placing purple bows on the end of both of Hayoung’s braids, which she loved.

At 4pm, the family was heading to the beach by foot, since it was just by the end of their street. The sun was already setting in the sky, shining the afternoon glow onto the crowded beach, with every single citizen of Sokdong enjoying the fun event. There was a big stage on one end of the beach, the area in front of it cleared for dancing, a colorful merry-go-round nearby, a haunted house and many tents of food, drinks and games scattered throughout the entire shore.

Mingyu had Hayoung excitedly sitting on his shoulders so she could get a better view of the entire festival as they walked in. He spotted his friends as soon as they approached the food court area and told his dad and Mingjun he’d be back with Hayoung in just a bit.

“C’mon, I’ll take you to meet my friends.” He told his sister as she squealed in excitement.

“Oh, look who’s finally here!” Soonyoung yelled and waved at Mingyu as soon as he was close enough to hear. Him, Seokmin, Hansol, Chan, Seungkwan and Jeonghan were all chatting by the Jeon’s tent which was side by side with the one from Seungcheol’s pocket bar. Mingyu took a quick glance at the tents and saw Wonwoo looking at him with a small smile on his lips as he served a bowl to a customer. He returned the smile before he felt his cheeks flush and quickly deviated his attention to wave at Seungcheol.

“Hey guys, I brought my little sister for you to meet.” Mingyu told them, taking his sister’s little hands in his and waving them at his friends. “Hayoung, this is everyone.”

“Hi, everyone.” She spoke with a small voice, a bit shy.

“Oh my god, I love kids.” Seokmin squealed with Soonyoung as they waved back at Hayoung with huge grins on their faces. “Hi, cutie!”

“Look at you, so pretty with those braids.” Seungkwan cooed at her as well.

“Mingyu oppa did them!” She exclaimed, happily. Mingyu felt his cheeks get red with embarrassment as all of his friends looked at him with their eyebrows raised, incredulous.

“What? I can be good at these things as well.” He shrugged. Mingyu told Hayoung to wave to Wonwoo and Seungcheol at the tents too before she ran off to her parents, which were standing nearby, and Mingyu promised her he’d meet them to go play with her in just a few minutes.

“So, how’s everything?” He asked the guys after seeing his sister off.

“Well, meeting Hayoung has been the highlight of the day so far.” Seungkwan commented. “You know, since none of these lazy asses here want to go with me to play minigames or visit the fortune teller before it’s the evening and I’ll have to take my shift at Cheol’s tent.” He narrowed his eyes at Soonyoung, Seokmin and Jeonghan.

Mingyu noticed Hansol was standing on the other side of the group, far away from Seungkwan and chatting with Chan. He wondered if the two of them were still at odds with each other.

“Not my fault.” Soonyoung argued. “I’ll have to take over Wonwoo’s place in the tent in an hour, so I don’t want to get distracted and miss my queue because I know he’ll whip my ass if I do that.” 

“So what? Are we just gonna stand here all day?” Seungkwan complained, puffing in annoyance. “You know what? I don’t need you, I’ll go have fun by myself.”

He gave a quick glance at Hansol, who busied himself talking to Chan, before turning around and going in the direction of the stage where a band was playing.

“Oh, Seokmin, sweetie!” An old lady approached them and caught their attention, while she gushed over Seokmin. “No Mrs. Diamond today?” She asked, looking hopeful.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Han, not today.” He returned her a sad smile, squeezing her shoulder in an apology.

“That’s too bad, I really enjoy your concerts!” She told him. “I even went to the one you had this week, but the bar was too crowded and I was kind of tired, so I left in the middle of it.”

“Oh, ma’am, I’m so sorry.” Seokmin apologized, looking genuinely upset. “I promise I’ll try to plan an afternoon concert at my family’s coffee shop one day, is that alright?”

The petite old lady grinned and nodded at him, giving Seokmin a few pats on the back before going on her way.

“Who knew Diamond K would please such a diverse audience, huh?” Chan commented, wanting to mock his brother.

“Yeah, well, I just wish her power could be used to getting men attracted to me.” Seokmin sighed, looking up.

“Come on now, I saw loads of guys running towards you as soon as the concert was over that night.” Mingyu pointed out.

“Yeah, he has a big list of phone numbers he’s received from his last few shows.” Soonyoung rolled his eyes, like his friend was exaggerating. Seokmin blushed a bit, looking quite pleased with his popularity for a second, before making a frustrated face.

“They’re all straight fetichists jerks, though.” He shrugged. “But, yeah, maybe… I should pay more attention and see if one of them is any different.”

The group talked a bit more, before Mingyu parted ways to be with his family for a couple of hours, promising he would meet them again in the evening.

After what felt like an eternity under the hot sun, Mingyu was sure he’d visited all of the minigames tents at the festival, such as fishing, the slingshot and balloon popping ones, the spinning wheel, and even the bean bag toss. Of course, Mingyu would first help his sister out with her aim, but after she wasn’t able to get it, he’d end up doing it for her. Hayoung nailed the fishing game, though, and it became her favorite, not wanting to leave the tent after half an hour there.

Mingyu was leaving the kid-friendly haunted house with an excited Hayoung holding onto him with one hand and onto three plushies with the other. It was the last thing they hadn’t done it yet and Mingyu was tired, but seeing his sister smile was worth it.

“Hey! How did it go in there?” Mingjun and his dad, who were waiting nearby approached the two of them.

“Not scary at all!” Hayoung exclaimed with a smile on her face, proud of herself.

“Hell yeah, she didn’t even scream once!” Mingyu praised her, clutching her tiny body closer to his leg. Realizing her braids were a bit messed up, he kneeled down to fix them. “The same could not be said about me, though.”

“He got super-duper scared!” She laughed out loud, telling her parents.

“Yeah and she kept laughing at her big but panicked brother.” Mingyu chuckled as well as he was finishing up with her braids.

“Hey, guys.” He heard a familiar voice and looked up to see Wonwoo smiling down at him and nodding at Mingjun and his dad.

“Hi, Wonwoo! So good to see you!” Mingjun smiled and pulled him into a hug, kind as ever.

“I was walking by and noticed you guys over here, so I came to say hi.” He explained, then taking a big bunny plushie from behind his back. “And also to give this to Hayoung.”

“For me?” Her wide eyes sparkled in disbelief, mouth hung open.

“Yeah, for you.” Wonwoo giggled and Mingyu could feel something tingling inside him as a reaction to the sound. “I was playing darts with Hansol and ended up winning this. I’m not that into plushies and don’t have any siblings, so I figured Hayoung would like it.” He explained to Mingyu and Mingjun, handing Hayoung the white plush doll that was almost the same size as her.

“How do you answer, Hayoung?” Mingjun raised her eyebrows at her daughter, trying to teach her some manners.

“Thank you so much, Wonwoo oppa!” She grinned big, hugging tight onto the bunny. The other plushies that she was holding before fell onto the floor and Mingjun had to pick them up, since the kid didn’t even care much for them now, all of her attention drawn to her new toy.

“Okay, should we go now? Leave your brother to spend some time with his friend?” Mingyu’s dad suggested to Hayoung and she nodded, quickly hugging Mingyu goodbye before she hopped excitedly alongside her parents, not letting go of her new plushie.

Mingyu was still kneeling down on the floor, watching his sister go away with a smile on his face as he got up and cleaned the dirt on his pants.

“You’ve just received the position of her favorite one amongst my group of friends.” Mingyu told Wonwoo, giving him a soft smile. The other blushed a little, putting his hands inside his pockets.

“It was nothing.” He said, looking into Mingyu’s eyes, a small smile on his lips. “I like to see how attentive you are with your sister. She clearly loves you a lot.”

“It’s the least I can do after being absent for so long.” Mingyu shrugged, speaking sincerely. “I can’t believe how much I missed.”

“I’m sure she doesn’t even think about it, though. She’s just glad you’re here now.” Wonwoo attempted to comfort him.

There was a few seconds of silence between them, both not knowing what to say next after everything that went down and what they’d texted each other.

“So…” Mingyu took a few steps closer, biting on his bottom lip as he watched Wonwoo glance from the ground to him.

“So…” Wonwoo repeated, looking back at Mingyu.

“I… Well, we should talk about… Some things.” Mingyu was so awkward, he had no idea what to say, feeling his heart beat fast inside his chest.

“I agree.” Wonwoo got one step closer as well, without taking his eyes off Mingyu.

“Hey, guys!” Hansol shouted from afar, approaching the two of them, followed by Chan and Seokmin. Wonwoo quickly drew back from Mingyu, trying to act like nothing was happening. “Wonwoo, I’ve been looking for you everywhere, man. We wanted to play that shooting game, and then grab a burger, you guys in?”

“Uh…” Mingyu gave a quick glance at Wonwoo, who shrugged. They could try having some alone time later that evening. “Yeah, sure.”

The group of five played a few games, got something to eat and were about to head to the stage area when a lady called their attention.

“Hey, boy. Yes, you.” She pointed at Seokmin, who seemed startled. The lady was about fifty years old, wearing many purple and gold scarves around her hips and over her hair. Her hands, arms and neck were covered in golden accessories and she had a smirk on her face while looking at Seokmin. “I see a sparkling future ahead of you. You’ll definitely shine bright in your career.”

Seokmin widened his eyes so big that they looked like they could pop out anytime, as if hearing exactly what he needed to hear.

“You like that?” She smirked even bigger, motioning at the tent behind her, a purple “Fortune teller” sign written above it. “Come on in. I can tell you that and much more in less than fifteen minutes.”

“Oh, come on.” Wonwoo looked at Seokmin’s excited expression, judgingly. “She must know about Diamond K and just said that to allure you and make you pay.”

“I can make a group discount for you boys.” She winked at them and Seokmin looked at his friends, expectantly.

“I don’t know man…” Hansol scratched the back of his neck, uncertain. “These things kind of creep me out.”

“Oh, sweetie…” The lady turned her attention at Hansol, looking intently at him. “I can see you’re currently suffering from matters of the heart… Maybe I can give you some advice.”

Hansol immediately blushed, his ears and cheeks red as his mouth hung open.

“Uhm… Maybe we can go in just for a bit.” He surrendered. “There’s a discount, after all.”

“Believer or not, you gotta give it to her.” Mingyu whispered to Wonwoo as they followed the lady inside the tent. “She knows damn well how to lure her clients.”

Wonwoo nodded in agreement and then they saw themselves inside of a very well decorated medium sized tent. There was only a table and three chairs furniture-wise, but she had decorated the entire place with crystals, occultist symbols and figures that intensified the divination feel of the room.

“I’m sorry I don’t have enough chairs.” She went around the table and sat in her own chair, lighting an incense, organizing her tarot cards and crystal ball. “But I promise I’ll make it quick.”

The two most eager ones to listen to what the lady had to say, the Lee brothers, sat on the chairs in front of her. The woman took a few deep breaths, concentrating, and then started with Seokmin. Shuffling a few tarot cards, she analyzed them and told him she sees a very bright and positive energy emanating from him and that it usually attracts people towards him.

“That is very true.” Mingyu squeezed his shoulder, standing behind Seokmin, who turned around and gave him a bright grin, his eyes turned into crescent moons.

She also told him that Seokmin’s future held a great career path, if he strongly faces the adversities that he may encounter. To Chan, she said he had a variety of options for his future and would most likely succeed in any of them, given the perseverance she could see in him. Both brothers were very much pleased with what they heard.

“So, she just tells us what we wanna hear so she can have easy money?” Wonwoo whispered to Mingyu, who snorted and nudged him on the ribs, jokingly.

The lady, then, asked Hansol to sit in front of her while she shuffled cards for him and concentrated.

“I can sense a bit of sadness coming from you and maybe some trouble in the love spectrum?” She asked him, who gave her a small nod, a bit shy. 

Seokmin widened his eyes at Mingyu, mouthing a “She’s good!”.

“Well, what the cards are telling me is that you will have to face your fears if you want to move forward.” She advised him. “You need to stop overthinking.”

Hansol was kind of shaken up with what she told him, as he got up from the chair a bit dazed, not looking at anyone while he bit on his nails.

Mingyu and Wonwoo were a bit hesitant as they sat on the chair, the youngest feeling kind of nervous.

“Shall I start with you?” She looked at Mingyu and he could only nod. She shuffled her cards and placed six of them upside down on the table, closing her eyes and concentrating before she turned them around. “Hmm. It looks like you’ll face some inner conflicts in a close future.” She analyzed, glancing from the cards to Mingyu, who had a deep frown on his forehead. “You’ll need to sort out your priorities.” Mingyu felt his palms sweaty, wondering what she might be talking about. “In regards to your career, I see a few ups and down, but things will be fine.”

When moving onto Wonwoo, however, she stopped and looked back at him and Mingyu.

“I sense a bit of a connection with you two.”

“Uh…” Mingyu stuttered, his mind blank all of a sudden.

“We’ve known each other for a long time.” Wonwoo explained, expressionless. “Close friends.”

“Hm, I see…” She replied, but didn’t seem very much convinced.

Concentrating on Wonwoo, she picked out the cards for him and analyzed them thoroughly.

“Wow, it looks like you’ll have a big change in your life soon.” She told him and Mingyu watched as Wonwoo fiddled with the hem of his shirt, like he always did when he was nervous. “You’ll face some big decisions to make and maybe you’ll need a new mindset to make the right choices for you.”

Wonwoo had a serious expression on his face, biting down on his lips as he nodded at her, clearly worried.

“Oh, and I also see some development in your love life. Much sooner than later, actually.” She noted, before stacking up the cards when she was done.

“Ooh... Is Wonwoo meeting someone?” Seokmin teased, grinning from ear to ear and nudging his elbow at Chan, who also had a smirk on his lips. “It’s been a while since we saw our dear friend get some, huh?”

“Seokmin!” Wonwoo scolded him, blushing all over his face and neck. Mingyu had to look the other way to hide his smile from Wonwoo and the others.

They paid the lady, who actually did a reasonable price for them, unlike Wonwoo’s assumptions of her being a scammer, and then the group stopped in front of the tent to see what they would do next.

“Seriously, Seungkwan is gonna kill us if he finds out we went to the fortune teller without him.” Chan commented and Seokmin agreed. “I think we should get back to him and Soonyoung to make them company while they work their shifts.”

Seokmin and Hansol agreed, but before they all made their way back to the food court, Mingyu stopped them.

“Wait. I, uhm, Wonwoo told me he needed to show me something.” Mingyu told the other boys, who looked at him inquisitively. He glanced at Wonwoo with his eyebrows raised, hoping the other would get the message and back him up. “Right, Wonwoo?”

“R-Right.” Wonwoo looked back at him, a bit hesitant, but slowly getting what Mingyu was going for. “I wanted to show him how some parts of the beach have changed in ten years.”

“Oh, okay.” Seokmin innocently believed in them.

“We’ll be right there with you.” Mingyu promised and waited until the three were at a decent distance from them before giggling and jokingly shoving Wonwoo’s shoulder, who also had a grin on his face.

“We look like two teenagers.” He shook his head in disapproval, but still giggled along with Mingyu.

“Well, sometimes we need to have a little bit of fun.” Mingyu winked at Wonwoo, smirking. “Nice cover up there, by the way.”

“And where are we going, actually?”

“Where else do you think?” Mingyu raised an eyebrow and smirked at Wonwoo, before taking his hand in his and guiding him.

Wonwoo silently followed Mingyu as they both walked further away from the festival, to the end of the beach, then taking the pier and the same trail they had taken a few days ago, to finally get at their favorite spot in town, the lookout.

“Wow, the fair looks so beautiful from up here.” Wonwoo commented, looking down at all of the lights, colorful tents, lit-up stage and almost the entire town on the shore. Mingyu admired it with him, watching a small crowd dancing to the band that was playing pop songs on stage.

“Do you believe in all that stuff that lady said?” Wonwoo asked Mingyu all of a sudden, still watching the festival.

“I’m quite a believer in astrology and divination, so yeah.” Mingyu told him, honestly. He had sensed Wonwoo got a bit too anxious about the things he’d heard earlier. “But I also think that they don’t exist to set your fate or anything like that, they’re there to give you some guidance if you’re feeling lost.”

Wonwoo nodded, but kept looking down, kicking some rocks by his feet.

“I mean, I wish I had a fortune teller guide me when I was a teenager so I could’ve toughened up and told you about my feelings back then.” Mingyu shrugged, getting Wonwoo to turn to him and give him a half smile.

“I wish I could’ve been braver too.” Wonwoo admitted, his hands in his pockets. “Actually, at that time I was so confused about you and my sexuality that I really wish I could’ve had anyone to guide me.”

“To be honest, it was kind of a surprise to me to find out you were bisexual.” Mingyu told him. “I’ve always thought you were straight, so that’s why I really talked myself out of confessing to you or ever talking about my sexuality at all.”

“Yeah, well, it was a surprise to me too. So, I just kept denying my attraction to you and telling myself that it was actually some sort of platonic feelings.” Wonwoo explained, shrugging.

“So, was I your bisexual awakening?” Mingyu raised his eyebrows, very much amused by this revelation. “When and how did your crush start? Tell me more.”

Wonwoo glanced at Mingyu, who was leaning his back against a tree, relaxed and ready for all of the details.

“Are you just trying to get me to compliment you?” He asked, narrowing his eyes at the other.

“Well…” Mingyu shrugged in affirmation and Wonwoo sighed, a little smile on the corner of his lips.

“I don’t know how to explain, actually. I just caught myself looking at you in a different way.” Wonwoo told him, a bit embarrassed to be talking about this. “Puberty hit you and you just kept getting a bit more…” 

“Muscular? Bulky? Hot?” Mingyu asked with a smirk, full of himself, and Wonwoo sighed once again, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“God, you’re still such a handful…”

“Maybe being annoying is my charm.” Mingyu said, jokingly. He thought Wonwoo would tease him back, but the other just kept looking at him intensely. Mingyu’s comment was left unanswered and yet, Wonwoo’s eyes had much to tell about what actually were Mingyu’s charms.

“I thought I was over all that, you know? The feelings I had for you were replaced by disappointment for what happened, back then, when you left. And then me trying not to think of you at all…” Wonwoo admitted with a sigh, looking down. “But then, you came back. And, watching you enter the church that day… It all hit me like a truck again, but somehow differently.”

Mingyu nodded, understanding how Wonwoo felt. He had really let him down. But, hopefully, he could make it up now, even if it was ten years later. He had to. He wanted to.

“I thought you hated me when I came back. And, I mean, I wouldn't blame you for it.” Mingyu told him. “But, as we started reconnecting, I realized we could be friends again… And now, as we've grown older... Maybe, we won't be stupid to try and repress our feelings once again.” Mingyu looked at him in the eyes. He really wanted this to work this time. He needed it to.

Wonwoo nodded, agreeing with him. They locked eyes for a few seconds. 

“Hyung.” Mingyu spoke in a low voice, after Wonwoo got one step closer. He could feel his heart thumping inside his chest, his mind going blank. Only one thought in his head. “I really want to kiss you.”

Mingyu didn’t resist the urge to lick his own lips. Wonwoo’s gaze dropped to Mingyu’s mouth and travelled back to his eyes.

“Then do it.” Wonwoo replied almost immediately. It was what Mingyu was waiting for.

He took two steps closer as fast as he could and stopped when one of his hands reached Wonwoo’s waist and the other rested on his cheek. They were so close that their breath could be felt against the other’s mouths, gazes switching between eyes and lips.

Mingyu felt quite nervous. He was going to kiss his childhood best friend and crush, after all. It wasn’t just anyone. It was Wonwoo. His heart felt like it would jump out of his chest, suddenly hyper aware of his touch on Wonwoo, his fingers caressing his cheek. Wonwoo closed his eyes for a second, delighting in the light touch, and his hand made its way up Mingyu’s arm and rested on the back of his neck, playing with his hair.

Mingyu’s lips felt a bit dry with the tension, so he gave it a little lick, noticing how Wonwoo’s eyes focused on it and his breath hitched all of a sudden. Not being able to wait any longer, Mingyu's eyes fluttered shut as they closed the distance between each other.   
The sounds from the festival fainted and Mingyu felt like the world stopped spinning. As they shared a languid kiss, getting familiar to each other, Mingyu's mind turned all fuzzed out and his heart felt content. Their hands tested the waters, travelling across each other’s bodies, getting small reactions here and there. Their teeth subtly crashed when Wonwoo pulled Mingyu’s hair, making both of them share a laugh, and so Mingyu proceeded to shut themselves up by pressing their lips again and continuing to explore Wonwoo’s touches and taste.

After a minute or so, dizzy from nonstop making out, Mingyu stopped for a second, breathing heavily. Truthfully, he couldn’t believe that was actually happening.

“Pinch me,” he challenged.

“Ask nicely and I’ll think about it,” Wonwoo replied with a smirk. 

“Shut u—”

Funny enough, Mingyu was the one to shut up because he had just figured out that he was indeed not dreaming. Wonwoo lowered his hand to squeeze his hips, so he yanked his body forward in reaction while letting out a surprised little yelp. After exchanging looks, full of want, once again, both of them leaned in at the same time in a passionate kiss, their lips fitting more and more perfectly against each other. Mingyu moved back just a tiny bit to brush his lips against Wonwoo’s and tease him with the tip of his tongue. Wonwoo hungrily opened his mouth and took him in, the hand in Mingyu’s hair tightening its hold as their bodies got closer. Their tongues swayed around each other and Mingyu also deepened his fingers on Wonwoo’s waist while his other hand guided Wonwoo’s face to the side so he could get a better angle.

Their rapid breathing took over the music coming from the festival and their only focus was on the kiss they were sharing. 

Wonwoo suddenly pressed Mingyu back against a tree and the youngest let out a soft moan, which made the other press his body closer against him, the hand on Mingyu’s hair going towards his neck as his fingers caressed his skin and collarbone. Moving his lips back to catch his breath, Wonwoo just kept staring at Mingyu for a few seconds, his eyes dark and lips red. It was such a sight to Mingyu that he even grasped onto Wonwoo’s shirt, eager for more.

Getting his signal, Wonwoo leaned back in to give a few pecks on Mingyu’s neck, sucking on his skin. Mingyu closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of Wonwoo’s lips trailing down his neck and collarbone. They were both easily turned on just by that quick make-out session, but when Mingyu pressed his knee between Wonwoo’s legs, the other stopped what he was doing to look back at him.

“Mingyu…” He shook his head a bit, in disbelief, a dazed expression on his face. “You’re quite something, aren’t you?”

“I’m sorry.” Minyu pouted a bit, not sorry at all. Wonwoo smiled and leaned in to catch his pout between his lips in a soft kiss, sucking on them a little. He, then, moved on to give pecks all over Mingyu’s face, making the boy smile lovingly. He pulled Wonwoo into his embrace and nuzzled his face in the crook of his neck, taking in that familiar scent of Wonwoo’s perfume. “I wish we could stay here all night.” He murmured, against Wonwoo’s shirt.

“Me too.” Wonwoo gave Mingyu one last kiss on his neck and stepped away, laughing at Mingyu’s whine when he left his embrace. “We can’t, though. They must already be looking for us.”

“I know.” Mingyu sighed, taking Wonwoo’s hand in his and playing with his fingers. It all felt just like a dream to him. It definitely didn’t seem real that he had just run uphill to make-out with Wonwoo.

And like the universe had listened to his thoughts, all of a sudden they heard yelling coming from the festival, bringing them back to reality.

“Huh?” Wonwoo questioned, looking down at the crowd that was forming at the food court area. It looked like a fight had started between a few people and it had brought the attention to everyone around them.

Mingyu looked back at Wonwoo with a frown on his face, worried that it could involve someone they knew. The other took him by the hand and started to lead him back to the festival. It seemed their nice little bubble didn’t last for long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they finally kissed!!! so, what did you think?


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! For this chapter, I'd like to give a trigger warning for homofobia. It's right in the beginning of the chapter, so if you don't want to read it, you can just skip it, it's totally fine. Also, some nsfw later on in this chapter ;) Let me know what you think, please! Hope you like it!

Mingyu and Wonwoo arrived back at the festival still holding hands, but after seeing the small crowd circling an area right at the food court, they exchanged looks and let go of each other. Something was happening right in front of Wonwoo’s and Seungcheol’s tents and it could have something to do with their friends and family, so they ran towards it to see what it was all about.

Approaching the circle of people, Wonwoo and Mingyu excused themselves until they saw a couple of town old ladies arguing with a middle-aged couple, who acted outrageously and yelled back at them. The couple kept furiously pointing at two people in front of them while arguing, which Mingyu soon noticed to be Jeonghan and Seungcheol.

Seungcheol had deep frowns on his forehead as he looked intensely at Jeonghan, his hands on his boyfriend’s face, caressing his cheeks and asking him if he was alright. Mingyu had never seen Jeonghan so vulnerable like that. The boy wasn’t holding the confident posture and attitude he usually had, he had his hands wrapped in a fist on Seungcheol’s t-shirt like he couldn’t let go, his shoulders shaking and face twisted like he was forcing himself not to cry. He nodded at Seungcheol and took a deep breath before intertwining their fingers and looking back at the couple who was pointing at them.

“Oh no…” Wonwoo murmured beside Mingyu, watching the scene in front of them.

“I told you already, I don’t have anything to say to you.” Jeonghan raised his voice at them, but Mingyu could notice his voice cracking in the end, like he was gathering all of his strength to do so. “Just drag your homophobic asses elsewhere.”

A few people who watched the whole thing agreed with him and shouted “Yes, just leave!” at the couple, who seemed even more furious to have no one backing them up as they looked at the crowd.

“Fine.” The man yelled at them, taking his wife by the waist away from the crowd, turning back and adding: “You're not worth it anyway.”

The cold tone in his voice and serious gaze at Jeonghan sent shivers down Mingyu’s spine and it took him only a second to realize what that meant.

“Wait! Are those Jeonghan’s parents?!” He asked Wonwoo, dumbfounded. Wonwoo could only sigh and nod his head, looking at Jeonghan, who kept telling his friends he was fine, with a fake smile on his face, while his entire tensed body said otherwise.

Wonwoo and Mingyu made their way towards their friends as the couple left and the crowd began to disperse, a few of them giving Jeonghan sympathetic looks. 

“I already knew he was a jerk, so no surprise there, but she...” Mingyu heard Jeonghan tell Seungkwan, sighing and leaving his disappointment towards his mom implied.

All of the boys looked between bewildered and upset, hating to see their friend being treated like that by his own family. None of them knew what they could do to make it better for Jeonghan, but they all clung around him for support, showing him that they were there for whatever he needed. 

Mingyu had suffered quite an amount of hate and prejudice back in Seoul along these years of being an out gay man, but they were mostly empty words or disgusted looks thrown at him when he went out holding hands with some of his old boyfriends. Even though they still hurt, they always do, Mingyu tried his hardest to not pay much attention to them and was always glad nothing worse ever happened to him. But, receiving those harsh words from complete strangers was something completely different than receiving it from family members. 

Mingyu was grateful to have supportive parents that constantly told him they’d love him no matter what back when Mingyu came out to them at 16. In his heart, he’d kind of always known they would support him, but it was a scary moment nonetheless. He could still vividly remember the day his father went to visit him in Seoul and Mingyu gathered the two of them in the living room and finally took the courage to tell them a little more of who he was. He remembered how his mom’s eyes watered and she hugged him tight, thanking him for telling them and how his dad squeezed his shoulder and gave him an assertive look that told Mingyu there was nothing wrong with the way he was and that he would support him no matter what. His dad wasn’t a man of big words, but Mingyu could always tell what he meant through his actions, that was how they've always communicated.

Everyone should have that kind of support from their family, the ones who put you into this world and promised to love you and take care of you. That’s supposed to be their role. It was so unfair that Jeonghan had to go through a rejection like that, it literally pained Mingyu. But he didn’t need those people in his life when Jeonghan had his group of friends, his very own chosen family, who were there for him when those two weren’t.

“We’re going home now.” Seungcheol told them, Jeonghan’s hand clutched tightly around his own. Mingyu could tell by Cheol’s stern voice that he was really angry and wanted to externalise that, yell at something, but was holding himself together for his boyfriend. “Seungkwan, can you close the tent and gather the stuff for me?”

“Of course.” Seungkwan assured him, getting the keys to the bar from Seungcheol, since he’d need to unload all of that stuff at the bar later. “Call us if you need anything.”

“Okay, what happened?” Wonwoo asked the boys after Jeonghan and Seungcheol left, a big frown on his forehead.

“It was out of nowhere, we didn’t even see them coming…” Seokmin sighed, looking down, hands in his pockets.

“We were just talking, Cheol had his arms around Jeonghan and was giving him a kiss on the cheek when Jeonghan’s parents appeared all of a sudden and kept telling them they should be ashamed of doing ‘such a disgusting display’ in public.” Chan explained, gesturing the quotation marks with his fingers to cite the couple. “Jeonghan ignored them at first, but his dad kept saying some nasty things close to them, so Cheol tried to defend him and gently ask them to leave, but then the guy just pushed him so hard he fell on the floor.” Mingyu’s jaw clenched hearing that, infuriated. “Jeonghan was furious, telling his parents to never go anywhere near the two of them or he’d sue them. That was when the commotion began, because it drew people’s attention.” Chan continued.

“Wow, that’s rough…” Wonwoo breathed out, running a hand through his hair. All of that had definitely ruined their evening.

“I was actually kind of impressed by the town standing up to Jeonghan.” Mingyu pointed out. “When I came here, I was afraid some people would give me looks once they found out I’m gay, but it wasn’t the case.”

“Well, I like to say Jeonghan’s case was this town’s big gay awakening.” Seungkwan told Mingyu, beginning to gather a few stuff from the tent and putting them in boxes, Soonyoung and Seokmin helping him out. “He was fifteen when he came out to his parents, already dating Seungcheol since then. And his parents flipped on him. Beat him up and kicked him out of the house.” Seungkwan sighed while putting a few empty bottles in a box. “It was horrible. A whole mess. But, Jeonghan had always been very well known around the town folks, always so sweet to the old ladies, so they stood up to support him. That night, when his parents were throwing all of his things on the street, his neighbors called everyone they knew and suddenly a big crowd gathered in front of their house, yelling at his parents for treating him like that.” He told Mingyu the story, a few of the boys sighing along as they listened and remembered that day. “This town had always avoided controversial topics such as sexuality like the plague, but ever since then, they began showing more support. And it inspired people like me and Wonwoo to come out to our family.”

“Wow, I can’t even imagine what he must’ve gone through…” Mingyu commented with his hands on his hips.

“Yeah, but things are much better now.” Soonyoung chimed in. “Ever since then and after Seungcheol started his queer evening at the bar, the town’s people have been more and more supportive of the LGBT community. There are only a few people like Jeonghan’s parents, but who won’t mess with us because they know they’re outnumbered.” He explained. “Well, unlike today. No one expected Jeonghan’s parents to appear like that.”

“I’m sure they know not to show their faces again, seeing how much support Jeonghan has.” Wonwoo assured them.

“They wouldn’t dare.” Mingyu said, then, as an afterthought, added, “I hope Jeonghan feels better soon.”

“Yeah. We’ll check on him tomorrow.” Seokmin reassured them. “Oh, and by the way, where have you two been this whole time?” He proceeded to ask Wonwoo and Mingyu, frowning.

“We were… Talking.” Wonwoo responded, looking at Mingyu for back up.

“Uh, yeah, like I told you.” Mingyu turned to Seokmin, caught by surprise. “Wonwoo was showing me some… Places.”

His mind went blank. He had had an overwhelmingly eventful evening, so his brain didn’t seem to work anymore.

“Right…” Seungkwan raised his eyebrows at Mingyu, not seeming very much convinced with that answer.

“Anyway, I think the night is over, so Chan and I will be going.” Seokmin announced, covering his yawn with the palm of his hand. “Wonwoo, you wanna come with us?”

Wonwoo was kind of dumbfounded, looking from Seokmin to Mingyu while he decided on what to do. They hadn’t had time to talk about their kiss and what did that mean, but now they had to save it for another time.

“Uh… Yeah. I’ll go with you.” He turned to Seokmin, then gave Mingyu a small smile with an apologetic look when no one else was looking.

“I’m gonna go as well. My dad must’ve gone home already.” Mingyu pointed at the opposite direction, to where he lived. He looked at Wonwoo and gave him a nod for him to know he was speaking to him, when his words seemed like they were directed at the whole group. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

☼

Sundays were one of the busiest days of the week for the Kim’s grocery store. Simply because people in Sokdong were used to going out and partying on Saturdays and then taking Sundays to do the groceries, cook some meals and prepare for the week to come. Apart from that, there were also many product deliveries that the store received every Sunday. So, that’s why Mingyu got up quite early that day to help his dad at the store and didn’t even have the time to check on his phone, since he had loads of boxes to carry, even though he was dying to talk to Wonwoo after the roller coaster of emotions that was the night before and to check for updates on the rest of the group.

Honestly, Mingyu couldn’t deny that between placing a box here and there he’d look up for anything that should be delivered to the Jeon’s restaurant, finally finding three potato boxes that were addressed to Wonwoo’s family business. Mingyu got some orders close to the Jeon’s to make most of the trip and he refused his dad's offer to help him take the heavy boxes or ask one of their employees to go with him and quickly got in the company’s car.

He made a couple of other deliveries along the way towards the restaurant, but in less than an hour later, Mingyu was already there, struggling to take the three boxes one by one and place them in front of the restaurant’s backdoor before knocking on it. He had really overestimated his own strength.

“Oh, Mingyu! It’s so nice to see you!” Wonwoo’s mom opened the door and welcomed him with a bright smile on her face, her hair neatly tied in a ponytail, wearing the restaurant’s white and black uniform and a notepad in her hands. Wonwoo had told Mingyu his mom was mostly in charge of training the staff and that was what it looked like she was doing, giving the employees some last tips before the restaurant opened for the day. “Look at you, all sweaty standing under this hot sun, come on in! I’ll have the waiters pick those up for you.”

Mingyu picked up one of the boxes and let the staff help him with the other two. He didn’t spot Soonyoung between the staff, his friend probably having taken a day off after helping out at the fair the night before.

“You can put that in the pantry over there.” Yoojin instructed him. Mingyu did as he was told and sighed in relief as he began to cool down thanks to the restaurant’s air conditioning. He adjusted his overalls and took his sweaty fringe out of his face before stepping out of the pantry and being handed a glass of ice cold lemonade from Wonwoo’s mom.

Mingyu couldn’t even politely refuse, since it was easily one of the hottest days that summer and a glass of lemonade was everything he needed at that moment. He chatted with Yoojin for a little while, talking about the festival, his mom and his career. She had always been the nicest towards Mingyu, making him feel part of the Jeon’s family.

“You want to see Wonwoo?” Yoojin asked, reading Mingyu’s mind after she saw him not so subtly look around the room.

“I, uh…”

Before Mingyu could come up with anything, she pointed at the door beside the kitchen.

“He’s in the office doing this month’s accountability.” She told Mingyu. “But, you can come in! I’m sure he won’t mind.”

Mingyu hesitated for a bit, but made his way to the office anyway. He was dying to see Wonwoo, even if it was just to say hi for a minute.

He knocked and slowly got inside after listening to Wonwoo’s soft “come in”.

“Chanwoo, it’s actually good that you’re here, I’m gonna need you to check these receipts once again.” He spoke from his desk without looking up, focused on the papers and calculator in front of him. “I think there might be a few mistakes.”

“Uh… I’m not Chanwoo, nor can I check any receipts for you, but I hope you’re still happy to see me.” Mingyu said, awkwardly standing in front of Wonwoo, scratching the back of his neck after he closed the door behind him.

“Oh.” Wonwoo looked up, surprised to see him there. His eyebrows shoot up, but slowly his lips began quirking upwards. “Yeah. Of course I’m glad to see you.” He gave Mingyu a small smile.

“I had to come here to deliver a few boxes, so I thought I should come and check on you really quick. Your mom told me to come in.” Mingyu lied while approaching Wonwoo’s desk. He definitely had purposefully made it so he had to go to the Jeon’s restaurant. 

Mingyu observed the office, a small space with a desk and a bookshelf that took up the entire wall behind Wonwoo, filled with binders, folders and small boxes containing the restaurant’s documents and accountabilities through the years. Of course, the most recent ones were computed into the laptop on the desk that had papers and folders scattered all over it.

Wonwoo wore casual clothes this time, since he only went to the restaurant on Sundays to check on the business’ accountability, but Mingyu noticed he had his round shaped glasses on the tip of his nose and couldn’t help but smile at how cute he looked.

Wonwoo got suddenly embarrassed by his smile and broke the awkward silence between them by clearing his throat and pushing his glasses upwards.

“So, –” Both of them spoke at the same time, creating an even more awkward situation, but Mingyu only giggled at it, finding it funny. This kind of awkwardness had never been a thing between them, but given they also had never kissed before, it was only natural. Mingyu actually found it amusing.

Seeing Wonwoo shut his lips and let him speak first, Mingyu went on.

“So, we made out last night.”

Wonwoo snorted at how forward he was being all of a sudden.

“Yes, we did.” He chuckled, amused by it.

“Do you want to keep doing it?” Mingyu asked, nervously picking on his fingernails, a bit unsure. Who knows? Maybe Wonwoo changed his mind all of a sudden.

Wonwoo just kept staring at him for a few seconds with a fond look on his face, until he got up and walked closer to Mingyu, the youngest’s heartbeat getting faster at every step he took. Wonwoo, then, pulled him by the waist and leaned in to give him a small kiss on the lips, his soft lips brushing against Mingyu’s. The taller one kissed him back, taking his face in both of his hands and smiled into the kiss.

“Okay, then.” He backed away, suddenly excited like a puppy. He skipped happily and carefully pushed a few of Wonwoo’s papers away so he could sit on top of the desk, knowing Wonwoo wouldn’t mind. His overalls tightened against his strong thighs and Mingyu realized Wonwoo’s gaze changed onto them, biting on a smirk that was threatening to form on his lips. Stretching his arms as a motion for him to come closer, Mingyu grinned at him. “So, I think we should go on a proper first date, don’t you?”

“Is that your way of asking me or do you just want my opinion on the matter?” Wonwoo joked, his lips quirking upwards as Mingyu rolled his eyes at him, playing with his fingers. “‘Cause I think that asking someone on a date should be more courteous, right?”

Mingyu sighed, pretending to be annoyed, but couldn’t hold in his wheeze.

“Well, Mister Jeon Wonwoo…” He curved his back in an exaggerated bow. “Will you give me the honor of going on a romantic rendezvous with me?”

Wonwoo chuckled loudly and pulled Mingyu up, landing a big kiss on his lips while the corner of his mouth was still locked on a smile.

“Since you asked so nicely…” Wonwoo started jokingly, getting a light tap on the arm by Mingyu in return. “I will go on a date with you.” He answered in between kisses, stopping for a few seconds to look into Mingyu’s eyes. Mingyu felt like his response had a tone of relief into it, like it said ‘after all of these years, we’re finally doing this’.

He pulled Wonwoo closer by entangling his legs around the other’s hips and looping his arms around his neck, locking him between his body. Wonwoo kissed him intensely, mouth wide open to take all of Mingyu while his hands roamed around the youngest’s torso and back, finally landing on his thighs and squeezing them hard. Mingyu let out a sigh in delight, which made Wonwoo’s hands go up to his waist and pull him even closer, their crotches close together.

The two of them slowed down their making out session as they started to get out of breath, leaning their foreheads against each other so they could regain their breathing. Wonwoo kept drawing circles on Mingyu’s back while the other gave him a few pecks on his lips and nose. They were so entranced into each other that they didn’t even hear the door opening.

“Wonwoo, here’s my signature on that document you asked… Oh! I’m so sorry!”

Yoojin was so quick to leave the room that they only caught a glimpse of her and barely had time to break apart before she closed the door again. In the process, they clumsily dropped (and most likely broke) a stapler from the desk.

“Well, fuck.” Mingyu mumbled, throwing his head back in frustration.

“Oh god…” Wonwoo sighed loudly, running his hands over his hair and then putting them on his waist, shaking his head. “It’s my fault, I should’ve locked the door.”

“Well, don’t you think your mom would still find a bit weird that you locked yourself with me in here?” Mingyu questioned, raising an eyebrow at him.

“At least she wouldn’t have the image of another man with his legs and arms around her son like that.” Wonwoo countered.

“But she’s… Cool with that. Right?” Mingyu asked him, worried that something like what happened with Jeonghan’s parents would happen to Wonwoo as well.

“Yeah, she is, no need to worry.” Wonwoo promptly approached him and caressed Mingyu’s hand in reassurance.

“Alright.” Mingyu nodded, letting it sink in that they were okay. He reminded himself that they had supportive parents and friends that loved them. They would be okay. “I should get going anyway.” He jumped out of the desk and adjusted his clothes before he could get back out there in front of Wonwoo’s mother. 

“Do you want me to go outside with you?” Wonwoo asked, a bit worried. “I can talk to her.”

“No need.” Mingyu assured him. “I’m pretty confident in charming your mother.” He giggled, making Wonwoo loosen up a bit. “So, do we have a date tonight?”

“We have a date.” Wonwoo nodded, giving him a fond smile. “I’ll pick you up at around 8. You think of what we’re gonna do, I’ll leave it up to you.”

“You got it.” Mingyu winked at him, before taking a deep breath and leaving the office.

He barely finished crossing the corridor back to the dining area, when he heard a loud voice accompanied by a wide smile.

“Oh my god, Mingyu!” 

Mingyu’s heart almost jumped out of his chest, caught by surprise from suddenly being engulfed in Yoojin’s arms.

“I’m so, so happy that you and Wonwoo are together!” She exclaimed in high-pitch next to his ear, hugging him tight. “I knew it! Ever since the both of you came out, I’ve always told your mother you two could be a thing. You've always had something special, it's obvious you were made for each other!” Yoojin leaned back to admire Mingyu, holding his face with both hands, a big smile on her lips. “My god, you’re the greatest son-in-law I could’ve ever asked for!”

Mingyu felt his entire face blush, trying not to look Wonwoo’s mom straight in the eye.

“Actually, it’s very new, we’ll go on our first date tonight and…” He tried to explain, but she just kept overreacting.

“Oh! Oh wow, where are you going? I could give you a few tips on the most romantic places in town, I’ve visited most of them with Wonwoo’s father! Of course that was back in the day and…”

Yoojin kept rambling and Mingyu soon let his embarrassment aside and smiled back at her. Her excitement towards her son being with him made Mingyu’s heart fill with happiness. It was the best reaction they could get and Mingyu couldn’t even complain about her overstepping some boundaries.

☼

Mingyu spent the rest of the day thinking about what they could do for their first date, so focused on it he even told Wonwoo to not distract himself from his work and leave it all up to him, when the other had texted him asking about it. His heart was even lighter because Cheol and Jeonghan reassured everyone in the group chat that they wouldn’t let “bigoted scumbags” ruin their mood. “Preach!” Seokmin had replied, as Mingyu seconded him.

It was around 8pm, the time they had scheduled for Wonwoo to pick him up. Mingyu was aware that it was a Sunday, a weird day of the week for people to go out, but in their case it meant that they were free from work earlier, since on Sundays both the grocery store and the restaurant closed at 7. Also, it was perfect for what Mingyu had in mind.

"Hey." Wonwoo greeted him with a dumb smile on his face as soon as Mingyu got in the car, checking him out.

Listen, Mingyu was a model. If there was one thing he knew was how to accentuate his features with clothing. That evening was rather chilly, even though it was mid-summer, so he put on a denim on denim look, wearing a jacket with nothing underneath, a few of the top buttons left undone to tease his collarbones, as well as the one on the bottom, sometimes showing his belly button when he moved. His hair was pushed back and he wore a pair of glasses with no prescription on them as an accessory. He was pretty confident in how he looked and judging by the strong gaze Wonwoo had given him as soon as he entered the car, he was pretty sure Wonwoo liked it as well.

"Like what you see?" He raised an eyebrow at him, a smirk on his lips, teasing Wonwoo.

"Well, I'm going out with a model, I don't even know why I got so surprised..." He shook his head in disbelief, letting out a light chuckle. "I'll always feel underdressed next to you."

"That's not true." Mingyu frowned, checking him out as well. Wonwoo looked cute as hell with a simple black t-shirt with its sleeves folded, and some fitted jeans, his long and fluffy hair almost brushing over his eyes, with his usual thin round specs on the bridge of his nose. It was true that Wonwoo had never cared much about dressing up, but Mingyu could tell whenever he tried his hardest, noticing over the years he'd known him. That night, for example, the fact that he did a french tuck on his t-shirt was a great indicator. "It's not a competition, I just wanted to attract you with my looks."

"Well, aren't I always?" Wonwoo gave him a side smile and leaned in, giving Mingyu a small kiss on the lips. He lingered against his lips for a few more seconds, taking in their intimate moment, and gave him another peck before backing away. Mingyu swore he could feel butterflies in his stomach, his heart thumping in his chest. "So, where are we going?"

"Well, I'm sorry I have to drag you all the way back, but I was thinking we could maybe cook at the restaurant? Have it all to ourselves." Mingyu suggested. "If that's not a problem, of course. Maybe you need permission from your parents."

"Oh, that's fine." Wonwoo assured him. "I'll just need to give my mom a heads-up that we're there, in case someone sees the lights on and warns my parents that the restaurant may have been robbed or whatever."

Wonwoo called his mother whilst still with his car parked in front of Mingyu's house, before they were ready to drive off. Mingyu leaned back against the headrest of his seat as he tried not to laugh at the conversation Wonwoo was having on the phone.

"Hey mom, I'm calling to let you know we'll be going to the restaurant, okay?... Yes, for our date." Wonwoo sighed, like he was tired of hearing his mother talk about their date already. "I-I don't know what we'll be doing, we're gonna cook something, I guess. Yes, I know I can use everything in our pantry… No, mom, I don't need your romantic dinner recipes!" He was pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration, Mingyu giggling by his side. "Yes. Uh huh. Of course I'll take him to our best table, mom. I'm sure he won't think the floors are dirty, we clean those everyday." Wonwoo leaned his head back as well. "Listen, mom, I gotta go now, okay? He's waiting for me. Alright. Thank you, mom. Bye."

He hung up the phone and let out a big sigh.

"I think it's cute that your mom is so invested in this and concerned about everything going perfectly." Mingyu commented with a smile on his face. He reached his hand and brushed his thumb over Wonwoo's hand.

"She thinks I need to impress you. It's not like you've never been to my dirty teenage bedroom a thousand times and spilled coke all over my floor." Wonwoo chuckled, remembering the old days.

"But, I mean, I kind of get her. It's different now." Mingyu said, looking down at their intertwined hands.

"Yeah, it's different. We're different." Wonwoo agreed, squeezing his hand for reassurance, before letting it go to start the car and head to the restaurant. "You won't believe the amount of questions she had for me as soon as you left this morning. She wanted to know everything. Of course, I didn't tell her. But then she kept making a ton of suggestions about our date. If you hadn't told her, maybe I could've sneaked out of the house and we wouldn't be bombarded with questions like this."

Wonwoo didn't mean to say that as a call out to Mingyu, but it got him thinking about one of the many things they had yet to discuss.

"So, would you prefer if we keep things in secret?" He asked, genuinely wondering what was the best move for the both of them in this new unknown territory.

"I… I don't know…?" He looked at Mingyu, trying to figure out what he was thinking. Mingyu had no idea what would be the best call either. "Maybe we can talk about that later."

About ten minutes later, they had stopped in front of the Jeon's restaurant. Entering from the backdoor so people from the houses nearby wouldn't notice them, Mingyu almost tripped, following Wonwoo inside close behind so he wouldn't stumble on anything. Wonwoo finally turned on the kitchen lights and Mingyu had to blink a few times so his eyes would adjust. 

"Okay, so what do you want to do?" Wonwoo clasped his hands, wanting to follow Mingyu's idea along.

"Well, you're good at making ramen, right? Maybe you could work on the main dish and I'll work on the dessert." He suggested, looking around the big kitchen and already feeling a bit dreadful. He had never cooked in an industrial kitchen before. "Nothing fancy and complicated, just for the two of us."

Wonwoo nodded at him, tying an apron on him and going behind Mingyu to loop his over his head and do a knot on his back, taking the tall boy by surprise. Mingyu's ears got hot for a second, but he didn't have time to react to the gesture, since Wonwoo was already focused on showing him where everything was in the kitchen and helping him take all of the ingredients he needed from the pantry.

Mingyu had decided on baking a banoffee pie, a simple dessert he loved to do for his sister that included bananas, caramel and whipped cream, and Wonwoo, who wasn't much of a cook and just liked to watch his dad in the kitchen, had gone for a special ramen recipe that his dad had taught him.

"Wanna make this more fun?" Wonwoo raised an eyebrow at Mingyu, challenging him. "How about we set for both of us to be done in half an hour?"

"You're on, Jeon." Mingyu narrowed his eyes at him, a smirk on his lips.

"Wait, I didn't mean to start a competition! Only to put a bit more pressure in us." Wonwoo widened his eyes and chuckled at his competitive behavior.

"Too bad, I'm invested now. And you're going down." Mingyu winked at him, setting off the timer on his phone. "Now, let's go."

Mingyu turned on a cooking playlist on his phone he had made a long time ago, since he liked to cook so much, and jammed to the songs in silence, humming a bit here and there while they focused on their cooking. Occasionally, one would glance at the other with a small smile on the lips and fondness in their eyes. A couple of times, Wonwoo would have to take some spices and plates off the cabinet above Mingyu and would lean his hand on the other's waist for support as he stretched to grab what he needed. When that happened, Mingyu's mind would go blank, hyper aware of Wonwoo's touch on his back, and Wonwoo would notice the way he'd hold onto his breath and give the boy a smile in return. It was ridiculous how affected Mingyu felt for everything Wonwoo did.

"Hey, can you taste this for me?" Wonwoo asked him sometime later, raising a spoon off the pan for Mingyu to taste his spices. "If that's not against the rules of your little competition, of course." He bantered.

"Hmm." Mingyu pretended to think about it. "The judge accepts it."

He went over Wonwoo's side of the counter and blew on the spoon Wonwoo was offering before opening his mouth and allowing himself to be fed by Wonwoo. Looking at his eyes, he almost forgot to focus on the flavors in his mouth rather than on the endearing moment they were sharing.

"It's great, really." He approved of it. "Maybe add a little more salt to it? But not so much." Wonwoo nodded and did as he was told, before Mingyu called him over to his side of the counter. "Now, can you come taste this for me?" His pie was almost ready, he only needed to add the whipped cream and sprinkle some cinnamon on top of it and there was still ten minutes left on the timer. As Wonwoo approached, Mingyu took a finger full of whipped cream from his bowl and swiped it on Wonwoo's cheek in a swift move, causing the other to stop in his tracks, taken aback.

Wonwoo couldn't help but smile at Mingyu's fit of giggles, like a tall playful child, leaning on the counter for support as he laughed wholeheartedly. With a smirk, though, Wonwoo took the whipped cream on his cheek with his finger and slowly raised it to his mouth, watching as he caught Mingyu's attention with the motion, his laughter slowly dying down. Wonwoo sucked on his finger and gave Mingyu a wicked look, aware of what he was doing.

"I think it tastes great." 

Mingyu opened his mouth, about to say something, but closed it right after, distraught from Wonwoo's sudden gesture. His mind quickly started to work, however, and he took another swipe of the whipped cream, spreading it all over his lips.

"How about now? I wonder how it tastes…?" He left the question hanging in the air for only a second before Wonwoo lunged forward and took Mingyu's lips in his own, his hand on the back of Mingyu's neck as he guided his tongue over Mingyu's lips, taking the whipped cream inside his mouth. As soon as he did that, though, Mingyu started a battle, chasing the whipped cream with his own tongue while pulling Wonwoo closer by his shirt, a delighted moan leaving his throat at how good Wonwoo and the whipped cream tasted.

Wonwoo bit on his bottom lip and was about to circle his arms around Mingyu's waist when he smelled something burning and widened his eyes, going back to his ramen that had been boiling for too long. Mingyu shook his head in amusement, letting himself observe the other’s despair to fix what was left of the ramen, but also reminded his own self to focus again on something besides Wonwoo’s lips and steady hands for just a few more minutes because he also had more things to do.

Mingyu completed the finishing touches on his pie and put his hands on his hips when he was done, getting closer to Wonwoo's side of the counter to see him struggling with his almost burnt dish.

"Well, we still have five minutes left and my dish is perfectly ready, while yours needs a little bit of rescuing." He commented, a satisfied grin on his face. "I think we can both agree that I won."

Wonwoo sighed, turning off his stove and looking up at Mingyu, not being able to hold back the little smile on his lips.

"And may I know what is the prize I'll need to give you?" Wonwoo asked, his hand resting on Mingyu's waist. Mingyu leaned forward and gave him a little peck on the lips, smiling into it.

"I'll think about it and let you know whenever I need it."

Backing away just a few inches, Wonwoo looked at Mingyu with fondness in his eyes, gently fixing his hair, his fingers lingering on Mingyu's cheek.

"You know what? I don't think we need to keep this a secret." He told him, honestly. "Let's just be natural around everyone. We don't need to tell them anything, they can figure it out on their own."

"I'd like that." Mingyu gave him a soft smile. "Though, I think Jeonghan probably knew about this even before the two of us did."

☼

It turns out Wonwoo's burnt ramen actually tasted pretty good and not bitter at all. They sat at the restaurant's best table for couples, according to Wonwoo, a booth on a more secluded space with a window to the side of the street block, giving the customers a view from the outside, but not from the main windows, that faced the much crowded avenue, avoiding the feeling of being watched. It was also close to the bathroom area and it did make Mingyu feel a bit more intimate, his focus only on Wonwoo sitting in front of him and giggling at his terrible jokes whilst sharing his pie with him.

"Uhm, actually… There's something we need to talk about, Mingyu." Wonwoo's smile died down and he started to speak in a serious tone, startling the other. "Well… You're going back to Seoul. There's no denying that. We only have a few more weeks together-together, so..."

"Ha, how about we don't talk about that now…?" Mingyu scratched the back of his head, uncomfortable. He knew he was being stupid by trying to ignore the reality, but it just hurt him too much to think about them splitting up and having to come up with a decision for their relationship that barely started.

"Mingyu..." Wonwoo looked at him, dead serious, a reprimanding tone in his voice. "We can't ignore this."

"I know we can't..." Mingyu sighed loudly, running his hand through his hair and leaning his back against his seat. "I'm just asking for us to take a break from that serious stuff…? Please? We barely began this… thing we're doing and we're having such a good time, I'd hate for it to go away so suddenly." He tried to convince Wonwoo, who was munching on the inside of his cheek, thinking deeply. 

“It just… makes me a little worried, it’s all.” Wonwoo said softly, shrugging.

“I know. I also think it’s something for us to think about, but… let’s try to enjoy the moment. This moment. Look at us. Like, who would’ve thought, huh?” Mingyu took his hand in his, over the table, and looked him in the eyes. "I know we'll have to make a decision about… All of this at some point. But, please, let's keep this happy bubble for a while longer." 

Wonwoo hesitated for a couple of seconds but ended up sighing and nodding in agreement.

"Alright. It's not ideal, but… We'll talk about it, eventually." He admitted, caressing Mingyu's hand with his thumb and giving him a half smile.

They ended up changing the subject to a much lighter one, Mingyu talking about his model career and some of his favorite jobs he had taken while Wonwoo listened intently, he also talked about his friends back in Seoul and how all of them got together and, after realizing he had been talking too much, Mingyu indulged Wonwoo into telling him the big events that happened in town ever since he left or the whereabouts of a few of his classmates from school. It was when Wonwoo let out a little yawn that they had realized how much time had passed. It was already 11pm, the streets barely had any cars passing by and the two of them were alone at a barely lit restaurant in the middle of town on a Sunday evening.

Mingyu helped Wonwoo wash the dishes and take everything to its original place, like the two of them had never been there, and in about half an hour they were leaving, the air outside much colder than when they had come in.

On the drive back to Mingyu's place, Wonwoo was talking about some iconic prank Jeonghan and Soonyoung had done to the other guys a couple of years back and Mingyu really was paying attention to what he was saying at first, but he suddenly felt his eyes being drawn to  
Wonwoo's firm muscles on his arms while he stirred the wheel, his jawline perfectly shaped while he looked straight at the road.

"What?" Wonwoo frowned at him, realizing he had been staring in silent for a while. Mingyu had been pretty horny lately, okay, you can't blame him for his weird behavior.

"Hyung, just stop the car." He looked at Wonwoo, biting hard on his bottom lip.

"What? Why?" Wonwoo switched his gaze from the road to Mingyu, confused.

"I really want to make out with you right now."

"O-oh." Wonwoo widened his eyes, but didn't argue with him, parking the car on the nearest empty spot he could find, in front of the park, a couple of trees on the sidewalk giving the car a bit of a hiding space.

As soon as Wonwoo parked, Mingyu got rid of his seat belt and pulled him closer by his neck, hungrily taking Wonwoo's lips against his. With the sudden motion, they ended up clumsily knocking their glasses together, which made both of them giggle into the kiss, foreheads touching each other. Mingyu decided to get rid of his glasses altogether, since he didn't actually need them, putting them in Wonwoo's glove compartment and then going back to his lips, his intense gaze on Wonwoo. 

He teased his mouth open with his tongue and deepened the kiss when Wonwoo allowed him, the other pulling him closer by his jacket. Things escalated quickly and soon Wonwoo's hand was caressing Mingyu's exposed skin under his jacket, since the youngest had decided to not wear a shirt under those three closed buttons. Feeling the air in the car getting hotter, Wonwoo grabbed Mingyu's hair tightly in his hand, causing the other to moan between his lips. With that, Wonwoo went down to nibble at Mingyu's neck, sucking and licking over the spots he had just bitten, causing shivers to run down Mingyu's spine. 

Feeling even more turned on, Mingyu's hand swiftly unbuttoned the three buttons on his jacket that kept his chest and abs from being exposed. That attracted Wonwoo's attention, who leaned back and gazed between Mingyu's face and his chest, his breath getting heavier. He, then, leaned in to devour Mingyu's lips while his hand roamed all over Mingyu's torso, the youngest letting out little moans of pleasure whenever Wonwoo's fingers grazed over his sensitive nipples. Wonwoo realized that and began teasing him while his teeth dug deep on Mingyu's bottom lips.

"Hyung..." Mingyu let out a big and lustful sigh that not even he knew he could make. He opened his eyes to see Wonwoo looking back at him with dark eyes, his mouth parted and his lips wet with saliva while his chest moved up and down. Mingyu rested his forehead against Wonwoo's while his hand made its way to the other's thigh, caressing and squeezing here and there. He could hear Wonwoo's breath hitching as he slowly made his way up and inward, reaching his crotch over his jeans. Mingyu made sure to exchange eye contact with Wonwoo as he palmed him down there, massaging his bulge with his slender fingers.

"Mingyu..." Wonwoo let out a tortured sound when the other squeezed him harder. "W-What are you doing?"

Mingyu didn't respond to him but kept going as he saw Wonwoo's positive reactions, his eyes closed in anticipation while Mingyu fiddled with his belt and zipper. Wonwoo didn't even realize Mingyu bending down after getting his cock out of his underwear and into his hand, so he was startled to see his head on his lap in a matter of seconds.

"Mingyu, wait–" He tried to stop him, nervous and worried Mingyu was feeling some sort of obligation towards him, but the other had already put his lips over him, causing Wonwoo to stiffen his entire body in place. Mingyu kept massaging his length while his tongue swirled around the head. Wonwoo was getting harder and harder by every move Mingyu did, the youngest making sure to lock his eyes with him, looking up from his lap. "Mingyu, you don't… Need to do this." Wonwoo's chest rose up and down as he looked down at him, his hair sticking to the back of his neck and forehead, feeling quite hot, even though the air outside the car was far cooler.

"But I really want to suck your dick." Mingyu pouted a little bit, giving Wonwoo's cock a few kisses and seeing how aroused Wonwoo was by that, letting out a little groan. Mingyu was very confident in his skills, certain that he could drive Wonwoo crazy with his lips. Focusing on his task, his mouth fully engulfed Wonwoo, taking as much of his shaft as he could get, while his fingers applied pressure at the base. Wonwoo let out a gasp followed by a loud whimper at the feeling, a sound that made the corners of Mingyu's mouth quirk up in a little smile. Taking that as a sign to go on, Mingyu began to bob his head slowly, hollowing his cheeks with every up and down movement he made. Only stopping when he needed some air, Mingyu pulled off of Wonwoo's cock with a dirty popping sound, looking up at Wonwoo with his parted swollen and reddened lips, while he regained his breath. Smirking at the look Wonwoo gave him, like he was dizzy with arousal, Mingyu went up to kiss him.

"You're… You're gonna drive me insane." Wonwoo breathed through their lips, watching Mingyu not say anything and just move back to his red cock, already so sensitive that it twitched when Mingyu took it back in his hand. Wonwoo took away Mingyu's fringe from his eyes and sweaty forehead, slowly caressing the boy's hair as he closed his eyes and delighted in the feeling of being engulfed by the heat in Mingyu's mouth. As Wonwoo's fingers tightened around Mingyu's hair and his breathing started getting faster, Mingyu could tell that he was close. He saw Wonwoo's knuckles getting white by how tight he was holding onto the car seat with his other hand, his whole body stiff underneath Mingyu. He took his mouth off of Wonwoo, looking up at him with lips wet by saliva and precum, the other's loud whine in protest causing Mingyu's hair on his arms to stand in response. Fuck, he loved seeing Wonwoo this desperate for him.

"You can fuck my mouth if you want." He told him, his voice hoarse. Mingyu dwelled in Wonwoo's shocking eyes, like he couldn't be serious. "I mean it." He assured him, before going back to sucking his cock.

It took a few seconds of Mingyu bobbing his head, before Wonwoo allowed himself to join him and rock his hips at the same rhythm. Mingyu fastened his pace and squeezed at Wonwoo's thigh, feeling himself also get really hard by the breaths and small moans Wonwoo kept letting out, his grip strong in Mingyu's hair.

"I'm g-gonna..." He stuttered and Mingyu stayed put, his hands on Wonwoo's thigh keeping himself in his place as he swallowed the load of Wonwoo's cum, which made the other almost lose his mind, his legs shaking and his knuckles whitening with his strong grip on his seat as he came inside Mingyu's warm mouth. Both of them breathed heavily, Mingyu pleasantly staring at a worn out Wonwoo, with his head leaned back against the headrest of his seat, his eyes closed as he tried to get out from the high he was just in.

When he opened his eyes, however, Wonwoo realized they didn't have any time to rest.

"Fuck, the cops." He warned Mingyu as he saw a car parking behind them through the rearview mirror. Mingyu widened his eyes and closed his denim jacket over his bare chest while Wonwoo grunted and quickly tried to zip his pants and buckle his belt over his softening bulge. Mingyu tried his best to make both of their faces and hairs less… messy.

In less than a minute, a man walked up to the car and knocked on Wonwoo's window. It was understandable to find sketchy two men sitting in a parked car in front of the park and a few stores in the middle of the night and, even though they weren't about to rob a store or something, Wonwoo was still nervous.

"Hey, officer Park." Wonwoo greeted the man, who he probably knew.

"Hey, Wonwoo." The man looked at him with a frown, like he wasn't expecting to see him there, since Wonwoo was known around town for being a nice young man, who never got himself into trouble. He looked at Mingyu, who nodded at him. "What are you two doing here at this hour? You know you can't park here, right?"

"Oh, we were just trying to figure out if we were going to the bar or go back to our places." Wonwoo came up with an excuse, seemingly calm while he talked to the cop. Mingyu was surprised to see how well Wonwoo worked under pressure. If it was him, he would've freaked out and stuttered so much the cop would simply take him arrested.

"Alright, but don't you have an early shift at the restaurant tomorrow?" Officer Park questioned and Mingyu froze in place.

"Ah well, that's what I was telling Mingyu." Wonwoo pointed at him, giving Mingyu a quick apologetic look. "He wanted to go out, but I have to wake up early, so… We'll be off to our houses." 

"Okay, then, I'll leave you boys to it. Drive safe." The officer nodded a goodbye and went back to his car. 

Wonwoo kept sitting in silence in the car, trying to steady his breath, while they waited for the police car to drive past them. When it was no longer in sight, Wonwoo pulled Mingyu closer by his jacket and gave him a big kiss, leaning his forehead against the other's when their lips parted.

"I'm sorry, I'm still on that high after… What you did, before." Wonwoo said, his breath against Mingyu's lips. Mingyu smiled and gave him a chaste kiss on his lips before backing away so Wonwoo could drive them off of there.

"Okay, so thanks to you I'm now known across town as the one to disrupt the sweet and innocent Wonwoo?" Mingyu raised his eyebrows at him, his hand on Wonwoo's leg the entire time as the other drove. "That's what I get for giving you the best blowjob of your life?"

Wonwoo could only breathe out and give Mingyu a side look as a response, which made the other cackle.

Parking in front of Mingyu's house, Wonwoo sighed and leaned his head back while he looked at Mingyu.

"We had a good night, huh?" Mingyu asked him, teasingly, his hand squeezing Wonwoo's thigh, before the oldest's hand grabbed it and caressed his knuckles.

"We truly did."

"Well, we can do much more next time. Preferably not on the street." Mingyu whispered with a smirk on his face, leaning in to catch his lips in a sweet goodbye kiss.

"Please, not on the street. I can't have officer Park being suspicious of me, he has breakfast at the restaurant everyday." Wonwoo chuckled, watching Mingyu unbuckle his seat belt and get out of the car, leaning against the door to speak to him through the open window.

"At least you're not the one being painted as the bad influence who came all the way from Seoul to corrupt the young villagers of Sokdong."

"Well, if being corrupted gives me the best blowjob of my life, then I'm on it." Wonwoo leaned in to whisper at him, repeating his words from before to give Mingyu the satisfaction, before turning on the car. "Bye. I'll text you when I get home."

And Mingyu just stood there on his front porch, watching Wonwoo drive off, while his mind tried to work through the events of the night. He really did suck his childhood best friend's dick, didn't he?

☼

Mingyu woke up to the unusual feeling of someone laying next to him. Slowly opening his eyes because of the bright sunlight in his room, he looked to his side to see his little sister all cuddled up next to him, her stuffed pink bear between the two of them. He noticed she had no covers on, so he shared his, before checking the clock on his nightstand to see that it was 7 am, so she still had about half an hour of sleep.

With small movements so he wouldn't wake up Hayoung, Mingyu took his phone to check his notifications. There were a few unread messages on the group chat wondering where Mingyu was the other night, since he was usually quite active in their conversation. Wonwoo was the contrary, so thankfully nobody made any connections. Although, Jeonghan might have. Checking his other unread messages, Mingyu saw that Wonwoo had sent them a few when he woke up, an hour earlier.

[Wonwoo, 6:07 am]  
Good morning

[Wonwoo, 6:09 am]  
I realize it seemed like I wanted to tell you something after the last message, but really I just wanted to wish you good morning

[Wonwoo, 6:10 am]  
Actually  
Are you planning to go to the hangout some of the boys were planning this afternoon? Something about taking a few photos for Diamond K's professional instagram

[Wonwoo, 6:11 am]  
I kind of wanted to see you again  
But if you can't, that's fine

Mingyu smiled at his phone, at all of the awkward and hesitant messages from Wonwoo. He was so cute.

[Mingyu, 7:13 am]  
good morning, sunshine!! :D  
of course i'll be there  
the thing is tho  
i think u and i would actually prefer to see each other alone before that huh? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
i'll see with my dad if we have another couple of boxes to deliver to the restaurant today...  
;)

It didn't take long for Wonwoo to respond to Mingyu, like he was checking his phone right at that time.

[Wonwoo, 7:15 am]  
Alright  
;)

Mingyu giggled at the emoji, but immediately shut his mouth when he felt his sister moving beside him. Looking down at her, he noticed her tiny little eyes blinking through the brightness in his room.

"Morning, pumpkin." He whispered to her, giving her a kiss on the forehead. He'd rather let her go back to sleep, but it was almost time for her to get up to take a shower and get dressed for school.

Hayoung simply stretched all of her small limbs and yawned, before mumbling a "morning" back at him.

"How did you end up here?" Mingyu asked when she nuzzled against his arm, her face hiding.

"Had a bad dream." He could hear her through her muffled voice between the mattress and his shirt.

"You can wake me up next time, okay?" Mingyu assured her, caressing her hair. That made Hayoung remember something, pulling her face out of her hiding spot.

"You weren't here last night." She pouted at him.

"I know, I'm sorry I couldn't put you to bed." He pouted back at her, feeling his heart swell with love for his baby sister. "But, I told you I would go out, remember?"

"Did you go out on a romantic date?" Her eyes sparkled, wide with interest. "With a pretty girl?"

Mingyu smiled at her excitement. He remembered he and Wonwoo had agreed that they should take this naturally and not hide it as a secret, so it wasn't a big deal if he told his sister.

"I like boys, Hayoung. Not girls." Mingyu pointed it out to her, watching her mouth go in an 'O' shape, nodding in understanding. It amazed Mingyu how naturally children understood that love is love, no matter the person's gender, unlike many other adults who claimed they knew it all. "But yeah, I did go on a date with a pretty boy. A romantic date." He made sure to repeat her words. She clapped and quickly sat up on the mattress, excited, her hair disheveled.

"Is it Wonwoo? Is he your boyfriend?"

"I..." Mingyu opened and closed his mouth, stunned at how quickly she got that. "He's… Kind of my boyfriend. Yeah. You could say that." He decided to simplify for the child, since he didn't even know what they were. "How did you know it was Wonwoo?"

"You look at him like Barbie looks at Ken." She shrugged, like it was no big deal. Mingyu felt his ears get red with embarrassment. "I like Wonwoo." Hayoung nodded, in a tone of approval, which made Mingyu laugh. "He gave me that big bunny."

"Yeah, he's gonna love to hear that." Mingyu commented, looking at the clock to see she was almost running late for school. "Now, come on, you need to take a shower."

As he was standing up, however, he got a text from Minghao that made him stop on his tracks.

"Uh, actually, go get your mom, Hayoung." He told her without looking up from his phone. "She'll set the bath for you and I'll make you breakfast." 

He heard her excited "Okay!" as she skipped out of the room, but was more focused on clicking the picture Minghao had sent him of him, Jun and Jihoon holding three train tickets, smiling to the camera.

[Minghao, 7:25 am]  
Next stop: Sokdong!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it comes!! Ot13 finally together and Minwon moving a few steps in their relationship (if you know what i mean hehe).


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys!!! here it is, finally, chapter 8! i'm so sorry this one took longer than it usually does, but when i was writing it i got a sudden wave of inspiration and wrote 14k lol so then that made it harder for me and my beta to go through it all before posting here, also bc we've been extra busy lately. so, she helped me divide the chapter in two so it wouldn't be too tiring for you guys, so here's the first part! the next one is already written, we only need to review it a bit before posting, but i think it won't take as long as this one took. anyway, enough chatting. hope you enjoy it and please let me know your thoughts!

Mingyu excitedly moved his feet up and down in place as he waited for the train to come to a full stop and the passengers start to come down from it. He stretched his neck out to be able to see far ahead, looking for three people in specific in the middle of a small crowd that were also waiting for their friends and relatives.

Spotting Minghao, Jun and Jihoon, he smiled big and waved at them, running off to join his friends, offering to take their backpacks, which they declined, politely. They were staying for only a couple of days so their bags held only the essentials and a few change of clothes, not heavy at all.

Still, Mingyu found himself very excited to have them at Sokdong, with his family and new friends. It was like a piece of Seoul was there to meet this other part of Mingyu.

"God, I missed you, big guy." Jihoon admitted through a mutter as he received Mingyu's tight hug.

"It's only been a month and a half but it still felt like ages." Minghao hugged him too.

"This one over here had even forgotten what was life without you in it." Jun greeted him as well, talking about his boyfriend.

"Well, he's always chasing me around like a puppy, it's not my fault." Minghao shrugged, but held a smile on his lips, admitting to it as he hugged Mingyu.

"Thank you for the surprise, guys, this is so exciting!" Mingyu exclaimed, clasping his hands together. "I'll show you guys the beach and my new friends."

"And new boo too, am I right?" Jun said, like he was trying too hard and got weird looks from the other three. Minghao's though, was more of an urgent look. "What? You share everything with me." He shrugged.

"Yeah, but Mingyu didn't have to know that I'm spilling his secrets like this..." Minghao whispered to him, which Mingyu caught, an amused grin on his lips. He missed them.

"It's okay, guys, I'm… Yeah, I actually have a new someone." He smiled, fondly remembering Wonwoo.

"And we can actually see the good this town has been doing for you, Mingyu." Jihoon pointed out, motioning to his appearance. "You've got no more dark circles under your eyes, you look more lively and… Wow, this tan of yours..." He commented, raising his eyebrows. "I'm sure Cosmopolitan would love to do a summer photoshoot with you."

"Yeah well, they won't get to because I'm on vacation." Mingyu spoke in a singsong, really happy with his days off. Who knew that two months ago he was so reluctant in taking a break and Minghao had to almost beg him to come to Sokdong and rest.

He, then, led his friends to a hostel they had booked two rooms in, where they would be staying for the weekend, not too far from Mingyu's house. Looking at the clock, he remembered it was almost time for this thing he had promised Seokmin he would help with and so he asked Minghao and the others if they would like to join him.

Arriving at the Lee's café with his friends behind him, Mingyu opened up a big smile when he spotted Seokmin in Diamond K's pin-up outfit serving some of the couple of customers that were in the shop that morning. They didn't even seem a bit fazed to be served by a drag queen, probably gotten used to Seokmin's antics already.

"Mingyu, finally!" Seokmin let out a sigh of relief as soon as Mingyu came in, quickly getting rid of his apron and dropping his platter on the counter. "My mom saw me just waiting around for you and, even though it was Chan's shift, she told me 'might as well help around while you wait for your friend'." He rolled his eyes, imitating his mother's voice.

"God, you didn't even work for over ten minutes, quit whining." Chan complained from the other side of the counter, where he was brewing a cup of coffee for Wonwoo, who had been leaning on the counter chatting with Chan before Mingyu came in. The boy now looked at Mingyu with a small smile on his lips and Mingyu felt himself blush under his gaze, getting all giddy inside remembering their first date the night before. He returned Wonwoo's smile and then turned his attention back to Seokmin, shaking his head so he could focus on his friend.

"Uh, yeah, sorry I'm late. But I have a good reason!" He motioned to the boys behind him. "These are my friends from Seoul: Minghao, Jun and Jihoon. I had to pick them up at the train station." 

Seokmin grinned widely at them and Wonwoo and Chan also waved at the three of them back from the counter.

"Guys, this is my friend Seokmin or the brilliant queen Diamond K in all her glory." Mingyu motioned to Seokmin, who was wearing a casual black polka-dot dress snatched at his waist along with his usual red wig, this time short in a cute bob. The other posed and did a twirl so everyone could get a proper look at him, proud of his outfit. "And those over there are Chan, Seokmin's brother, and Wonwoo, my, uh, friend." Mingyu stuttered at the last part of his sentence, not knowing how to properly introduce Wonwoo and thankfully Seokmin didn't seem to take notice of his weirdness, but Minghao sure did, giving Mingyu a teasing look.

Before Minghao could make any comment, though, Mingyu cleared his throat and hurried them to get to the actual point of being there, doing a photoshoot for Diamond K.

The Lee's coffee shop was long, but not very wide, disposing of about five tables in the right corner and a counter with a few stools by the window on the left side, near the long bar, with many baked goods on display. On the back of the shop, they had a small stage where they often did a few poetry reading events or a talent show once a month, which helped give Seokmin his passion in performing. 

Wonwoo, the photographer of the day, set up his tripod and placed his camera in front of the stage, the blue curtain at the back being able to give a nice contrast with Diamond K's red hair, who was sitting on a stool. Mingyu was there to direct her, give her some points on how she should pose, which angle she should tilt her head or what emotion she could portray. 

Meanwhile, Minghao was cackling while he observed the whole thing and made comments with Jun and Chan about it. Jihoon took the opportunity to film a bit of Mingyu doing some teaching on the other side of the camera for a change, making sure to send those clips later that day for Mingyu to upload on his Instagram as an update on what he's been up to during vacation. Of course Mingyu had decided to unplug from social media and take a step back to enjoy his free time for these past couple of weeks, but he still had fans and a work life he'd have to go back to, so he needed to make sure to upload a few things every now and then, like he had done with a few pictures and Insta stories of the fair and his days of fun at the beach. It was nice for his fans to see his life outside of magazines and perfume ads and Mingyu understood that as well.

After taking a few pictures by the stage, Wonwoo thought it was best to move to a table by the window and get a few shots of Diamond K as a customer, living an ordinary life, with a cup of cappuccino and a bagel in front of her.

While Seokmin adjusted himself on his seat and helped Chan set the perfect table for the shots, Wonwoo took a closer look in his camera to check the lighting in the last few pictures he had taken. Mingyu had been dying to talk to him this whole time, but couldn't since they were busy with Seokmin's photoshoot, so he thought this was the perfect opportunity.

"Hey." He got closer to Wonwoo's side, his finger playing with the hem of Wonwoo's shirt in an intimate move, his voice sweet like honey, not caring who was around them. Wonwoo looked up from his camera to Mingyu with an amused expression on his face, getting the change of tone in Mingyu's voice. "How've you been this morning?"

"You want me to say I've been missing you, don't you?" Wonwoo looked back at his camera, a small smile still in his lips.

"Well, haven't you?" Mingyu pouted. Yes, he was very needy, okay? What about it?

"Of course I have, Gyu." Wonwoo turned back at him, a fond look in his eyes. "Last night was… Amazing. Best first date I could've asked for."

Mingyu smiled wide at him, feeling his heart do a jump at the sound of that nickname coming from Wonwoo's mouth.

"Well, glad to hear that. In fact, I was wondering if you're free today?" Mingyu asked, kind of hesitant. He didn't know if asking Wonwoo to hang out with him two days in a row was too much, but he honestly couldn't get enough of him. He'd spend every day with Wonwoo if he could. He'd be leaving in a couple of weeks, so he had to enjoy most of it, right? "I kind of thought about doing a picnic at the beach this afternoon…? It's not that hot today, so I thought it'd be nice. Of course, I'll totally get it if you can't, we've already seen each other yesterday, so..."

"I'll bring the sandwiches." Wonwoo interrupted Mingyu's anxious thoughts, getting a big grin from him.

"Hey, you two!" Chan called their attention. They hadn't realized the boy had been calling for them. "I asked if you want something to drink."

"Oh!" Mingyu took a step back from Wonwoo, drawing his attention back to his surroundings. "Yeah, I'd like some water, thank you." 

Chan gave the two of them a weird look, but went back to the counter without commenting anything about it.

Diamond K was perfectly confident for the cameras, so it didn't take them long until they were happy with the results and Seokmin thanked both Mingyu and Wonwoo endlessly after it, making sure to update his social media pages with his new pictures once Wonwoo edited them all.

Mingyu took his friends around town and showed them all there was to it for a bit and even took them to have lunch at Wonwoo's family restaurant. It was his day off and the boy couldn't join them, since he had a couple of things to do at home, but it was still the best food they had in town, so Mingyu absolutely had to take them there. When they ordered their food, Mingyu made sure to eat a light salad and to share the dessert in order to leave some space for his rendez-vous later on. After lunch, he went back home to take a shower and get ready for his picnic with Wonwoo, having told him to meet him at the grocery store so they could pick up a few snacks to take to the beach.

"I knew you'd be here." Wonwoo found him at the alcohol isle, looking at bottles of wine, and he giggled, a bit embarrassed. Wonwoo approached him and leaned in for a peck on the lips, which made Mingyu's heart flip in excitement of the fact that they could just come up to the other in a casual kiss like this, like a real couple. "This is the best one." Wonwoo picked a bottle from the shelves and handed it to Mingyu, after their quick kiss.

"Yeah, well, I don't know anything about wine, since I'm more of a beer kind of guy, but I was thinking maybe today we could go for some red. What do you think?" 

"I agree." Wonwoo gave him a half smile. The two of them picked up a few other snacks, passed by the cashier and then placed it all on Mingyu's picnic basket, one he had found while rummaging the house and Wonwoo couldn't help but chuckle at how he brought even a proper basket for the occasion.

"Well, a picnic needs a basket." Mingyu shrugged on their way to the beach.

"I know, but I would've been happy even if you'd brought a plastic bag." Wonwoo told him, fondly, which made Mingyu give him another peck on the lips. He couldn't take everytime Wonwoo looked at him like that.

All of a sudden, Mingyu felt a heavy droplet on the top of his head. He scratched his hair, looked at Wonwoo and caught one of the lenses of his glasses getting wet as well. Within a few seconds, a summer heavy rain began and none of them had any umbrellas on them, so they just ran under the torrential downpour, Mingyu holding the basket over his head in a pathetic attempt to try to prevent him from getting wet and screamed an elongated “why?” towards the sky. Wonwoo, who had brought his camera along with him, tried desperately to cover it with his arms, even though it was in a waterproof camera bag.

The rain was so strong that they decided to stop by and take shelter at Candy Cane, the sweets store they went to when they were kids. Large puddles collected on the sidewalk in front of the store, so they got in as fast as possible while the sky rumbled overhead and the rain brought a warm haze over the area.

"Oh my god, look at you boys!" Eunkyung, the old lady who owned the store, exclaimed as soon as they entered, rushing to them when she saw their clothes dripping on her floor. "Got caught in the rain, huh? These summer rains are so sudden, there's no way of us predicting when they'll come."

"Ma'am, we're so sorry about getting your floor all drenched." Wonwoo apologized, looking at the little puddles that were starting to form around them.

"There's no problem at all, Wonwoo, you couldn't just stay out there in this pouring rain!" She assured him, giving him a light pat on the cheek. "Now come down here, I'll give you two a couple of towels and you can drink some hot tea as well. I was just brewing some for myself and I don't want you to get sick."

"Thanks, ma'am, but there's no need. We better get going in case there's some flooding." Wonwoo told her.

"Well, since we're here, let's at least buy some candy for us while we wait for the rain to slow down a bit, right?" Mingyu interjected and Wonwoo shrugged, agreeing. They went in straight for the gummy bears at the same time, their favorite since they were kids, and laughed after they realized it.

"Hey, I was thinking." Mingyu approached Wonwoo next to the chocolate shelves as he picked pepero and chocolate balls. He was speaking in a low voice, but Eunkyung could probably hear him, since they were the only ones at the store. "The beach is definitely no longer an option right now, but maybe we could go to my place? My family isn't home today, they went to visit Minjun's mom for the weekend..." At the suggestion of taking their date to Mingyu's place with a lot implied in subtext, Wonwoo looked back at him with his eyebrows raised and a tiny smirk in his lips, which made Mingyu blush. "I mean, I'd hate for our day to be ruined like this, I was really looking forward to it..."

"Sure. I'd love that." Wonwoo took his hand in his and caressed his skin with his thumb, in reassurance. "We could watch some movies." 

"Yeah. Some Netflix… And chill." Mingyu completed the sentence with a teasing smirk, which made Wonwoo laugh out loud and shove him playfully.

They ended up buying a ton of candies and chocolates, so Eunkyung even gave her "favorite customers" - as she said it herself - a discount.

"Oh, I just love how your relationship has stayed strong through all these years." She commented, in an admiring tone of voice as she put all of their sweets in a bag. "Here's a gift from me to you." Eunkyung handed them two candies in the shape of a heart with the packaging of a cupid on it. Mingyu felt his cheeks begin to burn under her knowing smile. "I hope everything works out with you two."

He looked back at Wonwoo and the boy was equally embarrassed, stuttering out a thank you to the old lady.

Both of them insisted they'd clean the floor before they went out, even though Eunkyung complained about it, and left the store with the rain having calmed down a bit, but not seeming like it would stop anytime soon. Fortunately, Mingyu's place wasn't very far from the store, so they ran and got there in under ten minutes.

"Home sweet home." Mingyu said as soon as they entered his house, relieved to finally be out of the pouring rain. "And this time you don't need to carry a drunk Mingyu inside with you."

"Yeah, which is a relief because you're pretty heavy." Wonwoo joked, getting a playful nudge on his shoulder from Mingyu.

They were both soaking wet from head to toe, dripping all over the floor.

Mingyu took his shoes off and realized Wonwoo's gaze was fixated on his abs under his white tank top, which was now transparent. Mingyu smirked to himself, but didn't say anything, pretending he didn't see it.

"So, we should better take a shower first and then see what we can salvage from the wet picnic basket." He looked at the poor thing in his hand, which probably had floating cheese, wine and sandwiches inside of it. "I'll lend you some clothes and you can shower in my bathroom while I go to the main one. Is that alright?" What Mingyu actually wanted to suggest was for them to take a shower together, you know, save some water and stuff. But, he didn't know how Wonwoo would react to that, so he thought it was best to keep it to himself.

Mingyu finished his shower first and was already wearing some sweatshorts and a tank top while he looked through the mess that was inside that picnic basket. He'd definitely had to buy a new one for Minjun, since this was probably ruined.

"Hey, where are the clothes you said you would lend me?" He heard Wonwoo's voice and turned around to see him standing there with only a towel wrapped around his waist, a couple of water droplets running down his chest. Mingyu followed them with his eyes all the way to his happy trail, gulping down since his mouth got dry all of a sudden. Wonwoo didn't have very defined abs but they were already something and that was the first time Mingyu actually saw him like this, so thinking about ripping off that towel off of him was all that was in Mingyu's mind.

"Mingyu?" Wonwoo frowned, shyly crossing his arms over his chest when he realized the other's stare.

"Uh..." Mingyu shook his head to clear his mind. "Is there a chance you'll only wear that for the whole day?" He cocked an eyebrow at him, smirking.

Wonwoo rolled his eyes, but Mingyu could notice his cheeks blushing a bit. Fuck, he was so cute it melted Mingyu's heart.

Eventually, Mingyu lent Wonwoo a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. They were able to save the cheese – partially – and wine from the basket, but everything else was basically ruined so they had to throw them away.

With some wine in their glasses, a bowl of popcorn and a cheese platter, they made their way to the big couch of the Kim's living room to watch a movie while the rain kept pouring outside, the sun already low in the sky, announcing the end of the afternoon. It was just like when they were kids, spending their days watching movies and cartoons together after school.

They decided to watch Anabelle and, at first, it was nice to have Wonwoo next to him hugging Mingyu whenever he got scared, his hand caressing Mingyu's arm to calm him down whenever there was a jumpscare. However, it got dark outside pretty quickly, the living room was only lit up by the TV screen and a lot of thunder began to strike, making Mingyu mad with fear.

"Okay, let's please watch anything else." Mingyu begged after almost spilling his glass of wine on his father's couch when there was another jumpscare in the movie, his voice muffled since he had his face hidden in the crook of Wonwoo's neck.

"It's just a stupid doll." Wonwoo chuckled, hugging him tight.

"Hyung!" Mingyu sat up straight to face Wonwoo, his eyes widened. "Are you crazy? You have to respect the doll, otherwise she'll come and kill us!" 

"You're not actually serious, right?" Wonwoo asked, amused.

"Of course I am! The doll is real and I also believe in evil spirits, so we should never mess with them." Mingyu spoke in all seriousness. "Don't ever ask me to play ouija board with you, that's when everything goes wrong with those dumb teenagers."

Wonwoo laughed out loud, but nodded, giving Mingyu a kiss on his lips and cheeks before turning off the movie.

"What should we watch, then?"

"I don't know, anything is fine." Mingyu shrugged, but suddenly regretted it when Wonwoo's lips slowly quirked up, an idea coming into his mind, and Mingyu knew exactly what he was going to suggest. "Oh god, not Star Wars..." 

"Well, you said you never quite got it, maybe this time I can explain it to you and you'll like it!" Wonwoo argued, making a cute pleading face that Mingyu could definitely not resist. "Come on, try it at least one more time..."

"Will you give me reward kisses later?" Mingyu pouted and Wonwoo opened a big smile, seeing he had won.

"Of course, as much as you'd like." He gave him a peck on the lips before excitedly turning back to the TV to put on the movie. "Okay, so there's this thing concerning the order. Not the order of the Sith Lords, though.” Wonwoo laughed by himself, proud of his joke. Mingyu didn’t understand what he said but found it cute. “So. There's the order that the movies were released, the chronological order and also the order that the fans prefer..."

Mingyu looked at him with his chin propped on his hand. God, he was so infatuated he could do anything this boy asked him to.

"I want the order that you think it's best."

This time Mingyu actually paid attention to the movie and tried his best to understand it all, since Wonwoo was so excitedly explaining and commenting it all to him. He actually enjoyed it and they were getting to the end part of the first one, according to Wonwoo's perfect order, when Mingyu propped his feet on the coffee table, holding the bowl of popcorn in his lap, his eyes glued to the screen. Wonwoo's, however, were staring at his bare thighs, since his shorts were kind of tight and went up to his crotch, exposing his skin. Mingyu caught, through the corner of his eye, Wonwoo glancing between the TV and his legs and couldn't help letting out a smirk.

"Like what you see?"

"Shut up." Wonwoo shoved him playfully before going back to watching the movie, but Mingyu wouldn't just leave it at that. With his eyes on the screen, he propped his leg on top of Wonwoo's and not even a minute later, he felt Wonwoo's hand on his thigh, caressing it. Mingyu smiled and parted Wonwoo's legs with his own, the back of his thigh pressing against the other's crotch and he heard Wonwoo let out a sigh at the movement. His hand on Mingyu's thigh started to squeeze on his skin and moved up until it neared his crotch. Even though he was biting down on his bottom lip with the satisfying feeling, Mingyu kept watching the movie, thinking this little game of theirs was going to last for a while. He was surprised, however, when Wonwoo suddenly pulled on his shirt and attacked his lips, his hand going to the back of Mingyu's head while the other stayed put on Mingyu's inner thigh.

Mingyu couldn't help but giggle into the kiss as he put the bowl of popcorn aside, loving that Wonwoo was craving him like this.

"I thought you wanted me to watch the movie." He murmured between kisses, their lips brushing against each other as his legs went to the sides of Wonwoo's hips, sitting on his lap.

"I did, but you drive me crazy..." Wonwoo inhaled sharply, both of his hands making their way up Mingyu's thighs under his shorts.

Mingyu took Wonwoo's face in his hands and smeared an affectionate kiss to his lips, the tip of his tongue teasing his bottom lip until he licked his way inside, swirling their tongues around each other slowly. Meanwhile, Mingyu's hands roamed around Wonwoo's chest and abs, giving him gentle squeezes here and there. Once he had both of his hands splayed on Wonwoo's chest, under his shirt, Mingyu pushed him down slightly so he could be laying down on the couch. He smirked as he saw Wonwoo watching him with dark eyes and a look of desire on his face.

Mingyu bent down to lay on top of Wonwoo, his legs still on each side of his hips, while he nipped and sucked on his neck and earlobe, feeling Wonwoo's hands squeeze hard on his buttcheeks at every strong bite he took.

"You know, I remember being fourteen..." Wonwoo spoke with his eyes closed as he delighted in the feeling of Mingyu's mouth on his neck, leaving soft bruises. "And you had started to build a few muscles, so I..." He stopped and hissed when Mingyu gave him a big bite on his neck followed by a lick of his tongue over it. "I started seeing you in a different light. And that's when all of my confusion began."

Mingyu raised his head to look at Wonwoo's face, an amused smile on his red lips.

"Have you had wet dreams about me?" 

"I..." Wonwoo blushed very hard, avoiding Mingyu's gaze and devilish smirk. "When you left, I used to have these types of dreams, yeah..." He admitted, in a low voice. "Which was very weird to me, because we had seen each other naked many times before, we used to take baths together ever since we were kids, so..." 

"Hormones, puberty and sexuality happened." Mingyu gave him a peck on the lips, bending back down to whisper in his ear. "Now we get to take much more mature showers together."

Wonwoo groaned with the feeling of Mingyu's warm breath against his ear and pushed him down even closer, one hand on his ass and the other on his back under his shirt, caressing.

Mingyu was starting to get quite hot, so he sat up straight on Wonwoo's lap and took his tank top off, the other watching him with his parted lips, drawing Mingyu in for another passionate kiss.

Wonwoo gave Mingyu's bottom lip a few bites while he kissed him, his fingers tangled in between Mingyu's hair. They kissed for quite a while, until they had to catch their breaths, so Mingyu rested his forehead against Wonwoo's while they breathed each other's air, lips barely brushing together.

Wonwoo probably thought their last conversation was over already, but Mingyu thought otherwise.

"You know, I jerked off thinking about you a couple of times."

"Mingyu!" Wonwoo exclaimed, surprised with that sudden piece of information, pulling Mingyu's face to the crook of his neck, where he could feel the vibrations of the other's giggles.

"I'm serious!" He chuckled against Wonwoo's ear, giving him a few pecks on his neck. "I had a crush on you for a long time, so sometimes you popped in my head and it just happened."

To be honest, it was kind of hot for Wonwoo to think about Mingyu jerking off to him in his mind and how both of them had spent all these years thinking nothing would ever happen between the two of them and now they actually were kind of together and could finally act on their feelings.

Taking past shared experiences out of his own thoughts, Mingyu’s lips moved back to Wonwoo’s neck and chin, trailing kisses left and right, gasping softly as soon Wonwoo scratched his back or pulled his hair. Feeling a warmth pool on his lower abdomen, he felt a slight urge to slowly move his hips, grinding on top of Wonwoo.

"Mingyu…!" Wonwoo let out a breath, feeling himself grow harder with the movements and his hips immediately arching upwards chasing some friction. He had already been aroused by their make out session, but Mingyu's dry humping definitely took him by surprise.

Mingyu moaned as a response, rocking his hips at a faster pace and feeling Wonwoo's fingers dig deep on his back. The sensation was extra pleasant since both of them were wearing sweatpants and shorts and Mingyu, of course, didn't have any underwear on.

"Hyung..." Mingyu rasped, raising his head to look at Wonwoo's lustful eyes, his wet lips parted open. Yes, they were both very horny, but doing this with Wonwoo was actually something very meaningful to Mingyu, not like a casual one-night stand. So, that's why he was extra careful in asking his question, taking it seriously. "Do you want to go to my bedroom?"

Wonwoo sighed like it was a relief hearing that from him, so he smiled and simply nodded at him, following the other upstairs by taking the hand he was offering.

Once they were at Mingyu's bedroom, the couple eagerly pulled each other into another kiss. The youngest's hands gripped on the hem of Wonwoo's shirt, pulling it up and, when that was out of the way, he hurriedly pushed Wonwoo's pants down. 

The only sound in the room consisted of their heavy breathing against each other's mouths as they exchanged a messy kiss, teeth clicking and hands all over their backs, chest and abs.

Feeling his hard-on poking against Wonwoo's lower abdomen, Mingyu simply decided to take his own sweatshorts off already, laying down on his mattress in nude while he stared back at Wonwoo, who was standing in front of him, his broad chest moving up and down with his rapid breathing.

"Fuck, you look..." Wonwoo ran his hand through his hair, staring down at a completely naked Mingyu, with his disheveled bangs stuck to his sweaty forehead, defined abs and cock resting on his stomach, very hard with arousal. Wonwoo felt his own dick twitch inside his underwear with just the sight of Mingyu like that, so he had to take a deep breath to calm himself down.

Mingyu, who was leaning back on his elbows, eyes glued to Wonwoo's, smirked at the other's look of admiration on his face.

"C'mon, use me." Just the few seconds of lying there without Wonwoo's hands on him felt like torture to Mingyu, so he couldn't help but groan with the absence. He had always been kind of touch-starved, but with Wonwoo it felt like that trait of his had increased significantly. "Touch me anywhere you want, hyung."

Wonwoo let out a deep sigh at those words before leaning on top of Mingyu, his hands clasped on the other's thigh, moving them up and inwards without taking his eyes off of his. The other's legs twitched with the gentle caress on his sensitive spots and his breath hitched when he saw Wonwoo bend down and take one of his nipples between his lips, lightly sucking and tracing the tip of his tongue around it.

Mingyu whined, unconsciously arching his back towards him, the feeling of Wonwoo's warm tongue around his nipple sending shivers down his spine. With his head thrown back on the mattress, Mingyu was basically inviting Wonwoo to his neck, who complied and began drawing a trail of kisses along his collarbone and neck. Mingyu's skin was so perfectly tanned and smooth it even glowed under the moonlit room, leaving Wonwoo in awe for his beauty.

"Since I'm probably gonna wake up tomorrow with hickeys all over my neck, I was thinking of marking you as well." Wonwoo breathed against his skin while his fingertips lightly traced Mingyu's collarbone, giving the boy chills. "However, your beauty is your job, so maybe I should mark you down there…?" Wonwoo showed Mingyu a smug expression when the other raised his head to look at him with widened eyes, before moving down on Mingyu's body, leaving kisses along the trail, until he arrived at the other's inner thigh.

"And here I thought I was the teasing one among us." Mingyu commented breathlessly, biting hard on his bottom lip as he watched Wonwoo's every move.

"Well, I gotta have the upperhand at least once, right?" Wonwoo cocked an eyebrow at him while brushing over his thigh and crotch. 

“Please, please, just touch me _there_.” Mingyu whines desperately, feeling his dick twitch with desperation.

Wonwoo gave him a wicked look before finally taking his mouth to Mingyu's crotch, pressing a few gentle kisses and bites and then properly sucking hard on his skin while his hands caressed the thighs. 

Mingyu whimpered under him, doing his best to not close his legs around Wonwoo's head, but when the other began to suck on his balls while lazily stroking his length, Mingyu could only gasp and moan, his forearm over his closed eyes. He was already so aroused by their make-out session on the couch that it felt extra sensitive when Wonwoo touched him.

Wonwoo pumped Mingyu's already quite hard cock before beginning to give a few kisses over his length. Once he started to lick it all the way to the head and began to suck on it, Wonwoo could feel Mingyu's body trembling under him along with the small moans leaving his pretty lips. Mingyu had very strong reactions to every touch on his sensitive spots and that incited Wonwoo even more.

He bobbed his head a few times and swirled his tongue around it, teasing the slit with the tip of his tongue, all while massaging Mingyu's balls. Wonwoo could feel the other tugging on his hair while whining very loudly and he couldn't help but smirk with the delightful sound.

"C’mere before I burst too early." Mingyu pulled him up to lay on top of him and into a sloppy kiss, both of his hands squeezing Wonwoo's buttcheeks. "Why the hell,” he asked in between kisses, “do you still have your underwear on?"

Wonwoo giggled and quickly took them off, going back to his position on top of Mingyu. The other's hands began pressing down Wonwoo's hips onto him, causing both of their cocks to rub against each other. That made a shiver of desire run through Wonwoo’s body, so he focused less on the kissing and more on the chasing-the-friction. He just leaned their foreheads together, one hand on Mingyu's cheek, and they breathed against each other's air, gazes locked as they rocked their hips together, rubbing up against each other.

"Mingyu..." Wonwoo called his attention as Mingyu gave him kisses over his face. "I gotta be honest with you, I've never… Done this, you know? Anal." He mentioned, kind of nervous. "I mean, I have done blowjobs and handjobs on casual hookups at Cheol's bar but… Nothing that escalated to this." He admitted, his heart beating faster as Mingyu gazed at him, not being able to read his expression at all.

"Hyung,” Mingyu had a little trouble focusing with his mind overpowered by pleasure, but paid attention enough to acknowledge the situation. “It's totally okay." He told him, giving him a reassuring smile. "We don't need to do any of this. We could just play around with each other, I can get you off..."

"No, but I want this." Wonwoo interrupted him, speaking seriously. He looked down at his very hard cock between the both of them and, with his hand, began stroking both of their lengths. He groaned at the feeling and let out a loud sigh afterwards, watching Mingyu move his hips along to his pace. "Fuck, I really want this." 

"Yeah?" Mingyu spoke in a raspy voice, raising his eyebrow at Wonwoo with a smug expression. "Good, 'cause I really want you inside of me."

Wonwoo closed his eyes at those words, feeling them hit every cell of his body.

"And don't worry, I can guide you." Mingyu whispered against his ear with his thumb pulling down on Wonwoo's bottom lip, causing a shiver to run down Wonwoo's spine. "There's some lube and condom in my drawer."

Wonwoo nodded and quickly stood up to get them, getting a good look at Mingyu with his legs spread on the bed and stroking himself, waiting for him. He was going to go insane with just that image alone.

Mingyu motioned for him to lay down beside him on the mattress and turned to his side to give Wonwoo a big kiss and pull his body closer to his.

"Give me your hand." Wonwoo could feel his breath against his face, watching him take the bottle of lube and squirt a portion of it in both of their hands. "Now you work me open while I work on you."

Wonwoo hadn't even processed his words yet, before Mingyu had his leg thrown over his hip and his lubed hand between their bodies, stroking Wonwoo's cock. The oldest had to hold out a loud moan with the sudden hit of pleasure and concentrate on spreading Mingyu and finding his hole. Once he did, he could hear the other's breath hitching and saw him closing his eyes at the feeling of Wonwoo's finger teasing his entrance.

He inserted his first finger in and Mingyu leaned his head down on his neck, taking deep breaths as Wonwoo started to move it inside him. He didn't stop pumping Wonwoo, though, his hand working diligently on his length.

"I'm good now, you can put in another one." Mingyu told him, rolling his hips around Wonwoo's finger. He stopped and let out a little gasp when the other one went in, though, biting down on Wonwoo's shoulder. “You can curve them too, play around–” He moaned as soon as Wonwoo followed his advice, interrupting himself. “With your fingers.”

Wonwoo became less hesitant and more eager with Mingyu’s every reaction, realizing soon that everytime his fingers would brush against his prostate, he would tug at his cock and both of them would let out yelps. Decidedly, Mingyu shut the both of them with kissing as his hand fastened.

"Are you okay, Gyu?" Wonwoo asked against his lips, heavy breathing and feeling intoxicated with how aroused he was by all of this.

"Yeah, go on." He couldn't help but grin a little at how it felt to have his nickname leave Wonwoo's lips in a moment like this.

The third finger was harder, but Mingyu focused on his hand stroking Wonwoo rather than how his ass was stinging. Missing the sweet ache of pleasure, he felt more and more the need for something bigger to fill him up soon.

"Come on, now." Mingyu pressed a small kiss on his lips to let him know he was ready, waiting for the other to put on the condom and apply some lube over it. He embraced Wonwoo once he did and pulled him closer, his leg tight around his hip as the other placed the tip of his cock on his entrance, going a little bit in and then pulling out, driving Mingyu mad. "Fuck, hyung... Put it in!" He was so needy already he wanted to take all of him as soon as he could.

Wonwoo's eyes widened in awe and he did as he was told, going in and taking pleasure in Mingyu's loud moan against his ear. He closed his eyes and tightened his hold around Mingyu's waist, slowly beginning to move his hips. The warm feeling of Mingyu's tight ass around him made him almost delirious, leaning in to give a few bites on his shoulder as he began fastening up the pace.

Mingyu's hands went up to the back of his head, gripping tight on his hair while he cried out with every thrust Wonwoo did. His cock was flinging between their bodies, brushing against their stomachs and it drove him insane with pleasure.

"Faster." He huffed and Wonwoo complied.

"Shit, it feels so good." Wonwoo shut his eyes tight, focusing on the feeling of Mingyu's tight heat around him, added to the nice stinging sensation of his hair being pulled and back scratched by Mingyu. He looked at him, skin glistening with sweat, perfect pink cheeks, ruffled hair falling on top of his eyes and suddenly felt really lucky to be experiencing this with someone so endearing. “You’re so, so gorgeous,” he whispered as he yanked forward and bottomed out all the way.

Mingyu's legs trembled when he felt Wonwoo's cock brush close to the right spot, so he placed his hands on Wonwoo's chest to make him stop and adjust the angle, getting on all fours and barely missing the emptiness as Wonwoo adapted and slid right away behind him.

Mingyu moaned loudly and held tight onto the sheets as Wonwoo began to thrust faster and faster inside him, his fingers digging deep into Mingyu's hips. Wonwoo was hitting him so deep that he felt like he was drunk in that feeling. He looked down and saw his dick hanging in the air, leaking precum with Wonwoo's strong hip thrusts.

Wonwoo threw his head back and groaned loudly as he pounded on Mingyu's ass, getting a long whine from Mingyu in response. He was feeling himself about to burst at any time, so he bent down whilst still moving his hips and his arm looped around his waist as he started to jerk off Mingyu's cock, drawing a yelp from the boy under him.

"Fuck, hyung!" He began to move his hips along with Wonwoo's movements, chasing his orgasm since he was so close. Wonwoo laid his chest on Mingyu's back, starting to get tired, but giving everything he had into pumping Mingyu and thrusting hard against him at the same time. He felt Mingyu quiver underneath him and knew that he was close, hearing his whines, unable to speak any proper words, so he pressed harder on the base of his cock and, with a last slam of his hips, Mingyu moaned loudly and his whole body shuddered.

With his orgasm, Mingyu's insides clenched around Wonwoo and, engulfed in that tight heat, he only needed a couple more thrusts before coming as well.

Mingyu finally felt like he could completely let go, so his legs simply melted and he fell on the mattress, face squished against the soft sheets and he closed his eyes, rejoicing in that bliss. Wonwoo was still inside and on top of him, panting for air as he tried to come down from the daze he was just in. Without saying anything, he got up only to throw away the condom and came back to give Mingyu loads of kisses on his back, even though it was very sweaty. Both of them were.

He laid down on his stomach beside Mingyu and watched him as he tried to steady his breath.

Mingyu opened his eyes and smiled at him, before gathering all of his strength to lean in and catch Wonwoo's lips in his, giving him a soft kiss.

"Can't believe Jeon Wonwoo is this great at sex." He murmured, which made the other raise his eyebrows.

"Did you have doubts about it?"

"I mean..." Mingyu shrugged, giggling at Wonwoo's offended expression. "You were always kind of nerdy, I didn't even think you had ever watched porn..."

"So, is that the kind of image I have, then?" Wonwoo looked actually kind of surprised.

"Do you want me to shout from the rooftops that you're awesome in bed? 'Cause I will." Mingyu asked, amused.

"No, everyone will come running after me. So, I'll let you have the privilege of being the only one able to experience that now." Wonwoo raised a hand to take Mingyu's fringe away from his eyes. The action and his words were so soft that Mingyu couldn't help but think that maybe he was talking about their relationship in the long run. But, he didn't want to overthink anything at that point.

"So, shower?" Mingyu suggested and soon he was stepping in the shower with Wonwoo, letting him tenderly wash his hair and massage his scalp while giving him wet kisses on his neck and face. It was all so unbearably sweet that Mingyu felt like he was living a dream to which he could wake up anytime.

That's why he held tight onto Wonwoo as soon as they laid in his bed after changing the dirty sheets, the other spooning him from behind. 

“Hey. It really wasn’t that bad.”

“What?” Wonwoo asked already half-asleep, voice dragging a little.

“I enjoyed it.” Mingyu repeated.

“The sex? Well, thankfully.” Wonwoo mumbled with a laugh, making Mingyu shiver and smile with the warm breath blowing against his neck.

“Star Wars, hyung. You know already what I think about the sex, dummy.”

Wonwoo yelped in surprise, but let out the most delightful laugh he had ever heard from the man. It felt quite contagious, so Mingyu laughed as well, grasping the older’s hand against his stomach a bit harder. He turned his head to share one final kiss before their eyes fluttered shut and their minds easily drifted away.

Mingyu was so relaxed and happy that falling asleep was easier than it had ever been.


	9. Chapter 9

Mingyu woke up the next morning feeling an arm lazily thrown over his stomach and a light breeze on his naked body coming from the window. For a second he actually thought he was back at Seoul after a drunk night out waking up to some stranger on his bed, but once he opened his eyes and assessed his surroundings he realized what was real: Mingyu was in Sokdong and had very much slept with Jeon Wonwoo, his childhood best friend and first crush.

He caught himself smiling at Wonwoo's squished face on the pillow beside him, lips slightly parted – drooling a little – and the tips of his long fringe almost covering his eyes. Unlike Mingyu, who was completely exposed, he had his ass covered by the sheets.

Wonwoo looked like he was in a deep slumber and Mingyu really didn't want to wake him, but he couldn't help leaning in and catching his lips in his in a delicate kiss, his hand slowly running up Wonwoo's arm and landing on his hair, taking a few strands out of his eyes.

"Hmm." Wonwoo hummed in response, still with his eyes closed, his lips quirking upwards with the loving touches he was getting. "Can I wake up to this every day?"

"I'm gonna have to charge you, then." Mingyu joked, getting a giggle from the other. "Time is money, baby."

Wonwoo pulled him closer with his arm around Mingyu's waist and gave him a big and passionate morning kiss, only then opening his eyes and getting a look of Mingyu.

"God, look at you." He sighed, glancing down at Mingyu's completely naked body directly under the glowing light of the morning sun. Wonwoo admired his perfect features, things that he wasn't able to see the night before in the poor dimly lit room, like the couple of moles Mingyu had on the side of his hips and his thigh.

"Go get your camera." Mingyu suggested, smiling as he saw Wonwoo lightly tracing his body with his fingers. It wasn't news for Mingyu to have his body admired like this, he was a model after all, and had done quite a few semi-nude shots before. Mingyu was used to getting compliments on how naturally built his muscles were or hear photographers talking about his beautiful tanned skin – easy compliments and cheesy hookup lines that usually got Mingyu to sleep with a couple of them, actually. But none of those compliments slightly compared to the gaze Wonwoo had on him. It was a different look, one that made him feel loved, special and actually seen. 

Whenever he'd feel bad about himself in the future, he'd definitely remember the way Wonwoo looked at him. That'd make him feel a hundred times better.

"W-What?" Wonwoo asked, surprised.

"I saw you bring your camera with you yesterday." Mingyu explained, shrugging like it was simple. "Go get it and you can do a photoshoot of me like this."

Wonwoo looked stunned at him for a few seconds, before nodding and making his way down the stairs. He came back to Mingyu full on posing on his bed with his head leaning on his hand and the other one placed on his hip. He was trying hard not to laugh.

"Please don't say 'paint me like one of your french girls'." Wonwoo giggled.

"How did you know I was gonna say that?!" Mingyu laughed as well, but in a second the playful vibe between them changed to a serious one as Wonwoo put his camera over his eyes and admired Mingyu through the lens, looking for the best angle.

Wonwoo didn't even have to say anything to Mingyu about what to do with his arms and face. Like the professional he was, the model placed an arm behind his head, flexing his strong biceps, and casually laid his other arm over his stomach, one of his legs propped up and his face facing out the window. The golden light of the morning sun shone right on Mingyu's tanned skin, highlighting his most beautiful features. It was like the sun was showcasing him to Wonwoo, handing him a Mingyu he had never seen before.

It was breathtaking, like Wonwoo was photographing an angel. He felt his heart skip a few beats and felt his lips get dry, since he was staring at Mingyu open-mouthed. He almost forgot to actually take the pictures, but lightly shook his head to get out of that trance and get a few shots. Mingyu changed positions and expressions, giving him sensuality and ease, the exact emotions Wonwoo was feeling through the lighting and scenario, without him even having to direct Mingyu. 

Wonwoo changed his camera to video mode and started to record Mingyu as he glanced at the camera, at Wonwoo, and held a little smile on his plump lips, then parting his lips and giving a more sensual and inviting expression. Wonwoo slowly zoomed in on Mingyu's chest, rising and falling with each breath, and moved up to his collarbones, neck and face, filming him lazily run his fingers through his hair while looking sideways. He, then, flipped on his stomach, his big body crossing the mattress while he had his ass up and his chin propped on his hand, giving the camera an amused look.

Wonwoo let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. That guy right there posing nude for him actually liked Wonwoo?! And had sex with him too?! How in the world could he be this lucky? To have such a man… It was unexplainable to him.

"Do you like the view?" Mingyu asked him just like the night before, on the couch, and Wonwoo could only let out a deep sigh before turning off the camera, setting it aside and jumping on bed with him.

Mingyu giggled as he turned on his back and watched Wonwoo climb on top of him, attacking his lips, hungrily.

"You're so beautiful, absolutely stunning." Wonwoo said between kisses, going down to his neck and shoulders, kissing him everywhere. Mingyu looped his arms around Wonwoo's waist and embraced him tightly, closing his eyes as he nuzzled in the crook of his neck.

"You make me feel like a god."

Wonwoo raised his head to look Mingyu in the eyes, supporting himself on his hands on the mattress. He gave Mingyu a smile, watching him close his eyes at the tender touch of Wonwoo's thumb on his cheek, caressing him and lightly running over his lips.

"You kind of are." 

They made out for a while and then cuddled in silence, too lazy to get up. Wonwoo showed Mingyu how the pictures and the video had turned out and he was fascinated by them, wishing he could post those somewhere. It would be kept as a special secret between him and Wonwoo, though, of that moment they shared together.

"Hyung, let me ask you something." Mingyu spoke with his head on Wonwoo's chest. The other hummed in response for him to go on. "Did you ever think about working professionally as a filmmaker?"

"Oh..." Was the only thing Wonwoo said, since he didn't know what else to respond. That was kind of a sensitive topic for him. Mingyu, though, had no idea and seemed pretty excited about it.

"I mean, can you imagine working in those big k-pop companies? Doing those amazing music videos that fans go crazy for? Or you could work for TV as well! You know, behind the scenes of those big dramas." Mingyu excitedly listed all the things Wonwoo could do. "Maybe even movies, who knows? You could be working alongside Bong Joonho on his next film." 

"Yeah, I don't know..." Wonwoo said quietly and Mingyu looked up to see him holding an awkward smile on his lips, an uneasy expression.

"Well, there's plenty of great film schools in Seoul, I'm sure you'd love it."

"Don't you think I'm a little too old to go to college?" Wonwoo asked, causing Mingyu to frown.

"You're never too old to do something you're passionate about." He told him, convincingly. "And I've seen how much you enjoy filmmaking. You wouldn't shut up about George Lucas and 'the art behind Star Wars' yesterday." He echoed Wonwoo the night before, motioning air quotes and giggling. "Ever since we were kids, when we'd watch movies together, you would always pay attention to the technical details while I would be drooling over the male lead." Mingyu was able to draw a genuine laugh from Wonwoo with that. "Plus, I've seen your videos. You have the eye for it. That shoot of me today? I know I looked hot, but the way you worked with the camera and the natural lighting is something very few people know how to do. You made it seem like a movie scene with only raw footage. Most photographers I've worked with would need a lot of editing to get to where you got."

Mingyu was honestly talking to him about his talent on something he loved to do and it made Wonwoo speechless because he never had anyone compliment him in a professional way like this, it was usually just general praises from his parents or his friends on how pretty his videos looked.

Of course Wonwoo had thought about working with filmmaking before. Like Mingyu said, he was passionate about it ever since he was a kid, noticing the small details in every movie he watched, making a list of his favorite directors on a notebook and having a computer folder filled with homemade videos he's filmed throughout the years. He had started with simply filming on his old phone when he was around thirteen. They would be small clips put together of him playing in his bedroom or a longer video of a trip he took with his family and even a short film of an intergalactic story he had created with his toys using a stop-motion technique.

Wonwoo still remembered the first camera he got and it was actually the first thing he bought with his own money after getting paid for the first time for the work he did at the restaurant. It was a simple camera, since he couldn't afford more than that, but it was already much better than his phone and, from then on, his videos started to get even better. Now, he had an expensive camera with many different lenses and other accessories that he was finally able to afford after saving his salary for months. He could now do a lot of quality content, mixing some new editing skills he had learned on the internet, but it was all kind of wasted on his homemade videos of him and his friends around town, with not much to show.

Everything Mingyu had said was true, he was indeed very passionate about it. But passion wasn't everything. There were a lot of other priorities in his life that didn't allow him to focus on himself like that. So he just had to let it go and pursue it as a hobby, instead.

Mingyu noticed that Wonwoo didn't say anything, holding a troubled expression on his face as many thoughts ran through his head, and simply patted on his stomach, giving him a reassuring smile.

"No need to stress about that, I was just suggesting, alright?" He leaned to give him a kiss on the cheek and Wonwoo nodded. "But we can talk more about that later. Now let's go and get up because the boys will be here for lunch and we still need to tidy up the living room and the backyard." 

"What? They're coming here?" Wonwoo raised his eyebrows at him, surprised.

"Yup. Since my family won't be home until the evening, I thought we could all enjoy a nice barbecue together, so I texted them all last night." Mingyu explained, getting up and stretching.

"My god, why didn't you tell me?" Wonwoo got up too, frantically looking for his boxers on Mingyu's floor.

"Well, we were having a moment earlier." He shrugged, nonchalantly. "And I thought we could, I don't know, have a quickie in the shower before..."

Wonwoo looked up at Mingyu's smirk and sighed.

"Mingyu, it's almost eleven, there's no time."

"It's called a quickie for a reason." Mingyu pointed out, coming closer to give Wonwoo a small kiss on the lips, then pulling him into the bathroom. "Come on!"

☼

After their shower, Mingyu and Wonwoo had put on some shorts but decided to stay shirtless while they tidied up everything, since it was so hot that day.

They were still taking the beers and soju to the freezer in the backyard when the doorbell rang, around noon. Wonwoo was carrying a couple of chairs to the outdoors table when Mingyu opened the door and he stopped in his tracks to see who it was.

Seungkwan, Seokmin and Chan all stood there with big smiles on their faces and bottles of alcohol in their hands, all of them wearing swimwear since Mingyu's family house had a pool in their backyard.

"Hey guys! Come on in." Mingyu greeted them.

Seungkwan, who wore a big hat and a pair of sunglasses dropped them down to the tip of his nose when he entered and saw Wonwoo there.

"Oh, two shirtless men alone in a house… Did we come to a barbecue or... something else?" Seungkwan raised his eyebrows at the both of them, almost a knowing look on his eyes, and Mingyu rolled his eyes, but still laughed.

"Stop being ridiculous." Wonwoo murmured, putting down the chairs he was holding and giving one to Chan, who had offered to help. "We got caught in the rain yesterday, so my clothes are in the dryer. Also, it's pretty hot." He explained, even though he knew he didn't have to.

"So, you slept here last night?" Seungkwan raised his eyebrows even higher and Wonwoo purposely ignored him, making his way to the backyard.

"Yeah, we watched a couple of movies, like the good old days." Mingyu told him, instead. Though, what they did after was very different to what they used to do in the old days...

Seokmin explained that they had arrived early because they had nothing to do and were craving for this barbecue already. Mingyu didn't complain, though, since that meant he now had more hands to help around.

They opened a couple of beers and listened to some music while helping Mingyu with cutting a few ingredients for about half an hour before the other boys started to show up.

Jeonghan and Seungcheol arrived together along with Joshua, who was already back from his honeymoon. Then, Hansol and Soonyoung showed up almost at the same time and, lastly, Minghao, Jun and Jihoon arrived, a bit shy, but Mingyu soon introduced them to the boys apart from Seokmin, Chan and Wonwoo, who they knew already.

The three of them got along pretty well with the others and Jihoon was already feeling rather comfortable talking to Seungcheol and laughing loudly at some of Soonyoung's stupid jokes. 

Mingyu watched from where he was next to the grill, marinating a few pieces of meat while he drank a bottle of beer. It was incredible to see his new and old friends getting along like this, all eleven of them together. His model brain was even visualizing an editorial called Seoul meets Sokdong in a magazine, with all of them pictured in it. There would be a group on a page that happily cracked jokes – beautiful spontaneous laughs by the main table that magazines could only dream about. There were the ones that mixed the sauces and grilled veggies, besides a few over to the side splashing water on the pool. Everytime Mingyu blinked, he felt like he was taking perfect shots, as if framing these sensational people in his mind. His memory bank was feeling like a fashion editorial with a travelling theme.

Most importantly, then, there was Wonwoo, his old and new friend or whatever he'd call themselves, helping him out with a few of the side dishes. A little intimate, very domestic. They worked silently together on the counter, arms brushing against each other from time to time, listening to the music that was playing, which had made Chan and Soonyoung fight over the aux cord.

"Look at you two." Joshua approached them, deciding to help with the sauce. Mingyu almost instantly dropped his hand from Wonwoo's waist, getting startled. They didn't talk about hiding anything, but Mingyu still didn't know how to act with Wonwoo in front of everyone else. "Putting so much effort into feeding our hungry mouths… I swear, only you, Wonwoo, could make this cousin of mine so chill and responsible like he is right now." He commented, causing Wonwoo to giggle.

"Hey! You know I love to cook. The more, the merrier." Mingyu told him. He honestly did love to cook. But, back in Seoul he barely had any time to prepare an actual meal, basically living off of instant noodles or delivery food, due to his hectic schedule. When he had time to cook, though, it would only be for him and his mom or for Minghao, Jun and Jihoon, so now being responsible to cook for thirteen people actually excited him. 

He directed Wonwoo and Joshua on how to season the food properly and soon they were calling everyone to the Kim's long backyard table and serving the side dishes while Mingyu finished grilling the meat. Seungkwan had also prepared his infamous drag-themed drinks and was trying to convince Minghao to taste it.

"I wouldn't drink that if I were you..." Seungcheol tried to warn him.

"What are you talking about? They're delicious!" Soonyoung exclaimed, raising his colorful glass in a toast.

Seeing Jihoon loving it, Minghao tried to take a sip of it and actually enjoyed it. He was more into wine, though, so after half a glass he decided to let it be.

Thankfully, the side dishes didn't allow them to get hammered with Seungkwan's drinks like they got that night at Seungcheol's bar, but they were already quite buzzed when Mingyu finally arrived at the table with the grilled meat.

They started to eat, some of them almost devouring the food in their plates and giving huge compliments to Mingyu, who got really happy to see how all of them found it delicious.

"Get off your phone, your food's gonna get cold." Seokmin nudged his elbow on Chan, who rolled his eyes at his brother.

"And here I thought I had left mom back at home."

"He's got a point, though, Chan. You haven't gotten off your phone this whole time." Seungcheol pointed out from a couple of seats away.

"I'm just talking to my girlfriend." Chan shrugged, getting a lot of looks from the other boys around the table. The Kim's backyard table was long, but obviously wasn't made for thirteen people, so all of them were sitting very close to each other to make it fit.

"What?!" Seokmin exclaimed, looking at his brother with wide eyes and cheeks full of meat. "You have a girlfriend?!"

"Is that the same girl you were talking to a few months ago?" Jeonghan asked, curious.

"Wait, you knew about this and I didn't?!" Seokmin widened his eyes even more.

"Of course, you always make a big deal out of everything and end up spilling my secrets to mom." Chan explained, narrowing his eyes at his brother. "But anyway, this girl is a new one, from college. We started talking just before I came here for the summer." He raised his head from his phone to see that every one of the boys was looking at him, interested in his story, so he blushed and focused on eating his food. "It didn't work out with the other one because it was a long distance thing, she lives a couple of hours away and we never got to see each other because of our schedules, so we just drifted apart and decided to end things."

"Yeah man, long distance must be hard." Joshua commented. "I can't imagine being away from my Dahyun. I'm glad you found this other girl, though."

"I kind of like her." Chan nodded and blushed once again hearing the cheers of 'aww he's so cute!' and 'our little boy is all grown up'. 

"But what did you miss the most with the other girl?" Hansol asked him, intrigued.

"I don't know, the physical things, maybe?" He pondered, with a hand on his chin. "Cuddling, kissing and… Well, sex."

"Lee Chan!" Seokmin yelled loudly, covering his ears in a dramatic way, making others giggle and Chan roll his eyes, as always.

"Stop being naive, of course your brother has sex already. Let him be." Jeonghan slapped the back of Seokmin's head. "In fact, I taught him a lot of things he needed to know, right Channie?"

"Oh my god..." Chan hid his face in his hands, embarrassed.

"But, I can imagine. Being away from someone for too long might be tough, you know, to relieve yourself." Soonyoung commented in between bites.

"Yeah, but you could always try sexting." Jeonghan said nonchalantly, taking a sip of his drink.

"You're one to talk..." Hansol commented in a murmur, but everyone was able to listen to it and a relay of displeased groans went around the table, in response.

"God, don't even remind me of that." Wonwoo shook his head, trying to focus on his food. Mingyu had finished what was on his plate already and just leaned his head on Wonwoo's shoulder, listening to the story with an amused smile on his face.

"Wait, what happened?" Jihoon, who was already friends with a few of the boys, asked, very curious.

"One day Jeonghan sent an accidental nude picture to our group chat." Soonyoung explained it directly, making a few of the boys groan again with the image in their heads, others giggle and Jeonghan shrug with a proud smile on his face, like he didn't regret it one bit. "I guess he meant to send it to Cheol, but he never deleted it, so now we all have this kinky image of Jeonghan all tied up stuck in our brains forever."

"I looked good, though, didn't I?" Jeonghan smirked and Seungcheol simply let out a sigh beside him.

"The worst part, though, is that that picture opened up a whole other aspect of our group, one we absolutely didn't need, which is the culture to casually send nudes to the chat on random hours of the day." Joshua told them.

"Yup, one day I was at work sitting beside my dad at the office and all of a sudden a pic of Seokmin in lingerie pops up in the chat." Wonwoo added, causing the entire table to laugh out loud, even more the Seoul boys, who were trying to imagine the situation. Mingyu got added to the chat ever since his first couple of days in the city, but fortunately, he hadn't been surprised with a random nude yet.

"What can I do? I looked really pretty and had no one else to show it to at that specific point of my life." Seokmin claimed, like it wasn't a big deal.

"You did look good, baby, you go and raise that self-esteem!" Seungkwan hyped him up and they both clinked their glasses and took long gulps of their drinks.

"A lot of us have sent sexy pics already, looking for an input from our close friends before we send them to someone else." Seokmin said, beginning to list their names, trying to remember all of the times it happened. "I did, Jeonghan did, Seungkwan, Soonyoung sent some roleplaying shit… And even Cheol sent one on accident one day! He deleted it right after, though." Seokmin laughed, getting reminded of it. Seungcheol, on the other hand, looked down to his plate, embarrassed. "Wonwoo didn't because he's kind of a prude." 

Mingyu snorted, remembering the night they had before, and immediately felt Wonwoo lightly elbow him on his ribs, so he held it in.

"Hansol sent one as well-" Seugkwan began saying, but stopped mid-sentence when he realized the other boys' confused expression, remembering that one was sent to him. "Oh, nevermind." 

He exchanged a couple of awkward glances with Hansol on the other side of the table and his ears got red. The situation was still kind of weird between the both of them and Mingyu presumed they hadn't talked about whatever was going on with them yet.

Thankfully, the boys quickly changed the subject, some not even realizing the awkward vibe between Hansol and Seungkwan.

Hearing their stories on nudes, Minghao started telling them some "accidents" that happened in their industry back in Seoul and how there was basically a Grindr specifically for models, artists and celebrities. He explained that, since he and Jihoon were staff, they could also be a part of it.

"I have Jun, so I never even entered that app, but Jihoon and Mingyu have and they've run into some weird shit." He told them, intriguing Seungkwan, Seokmin and Soonyoung, who were very curious about this app.

"Yep, sometimes you think you know a person from doing a couple of jobs together until they all of a sudden send you a dick pick on that app." Jihoon shook his head, scarred for life. "I've never gone on dates with anyone from there, though, just chatted a bit. But, Mingyu has. Even brought a couple of them to our apartment."

"Yeah, but those were casual one-night stands, nothing serious or anything. That app is definitely not for that." Mingyu responded.

"I would wake up the next morning, meet you in the kitchen and just knew you got it on because of that glowy aura you have after sex." Jihoon commented. Then, he stopped and narrowed his eyes, analyzing Mingyu. "In fact, you have that kind of aura right now."

"Well, what if I did have sex?" Mingyu simply answered him, shrugging and holding a tiny smirk on his lips. As soon as he said it, he heard Wonwoo choking on his drink beside him.

"Wait, you did?!" Minghao widened his eyes at him and everyone else around the table gasped, apart from Wonwoo who blushed furiously, putting a hand over his face as he calmed down from choking.

"Fuck, it was Wonwoo! Look how red his ears are!" Soonyoung exclaimed and pointed at his friend and boss and Wonwoo really wished he could fire him just for that.

"I knew Wonwoo was here because they hooked up last night! I knew it! I told you guys!" Seungkwan excitedly exclaimed to Seokmin and Chan.

"Yes! And we also noticed those hickeys on his neck!" Seokmin yelled back at Seungkwan, a big smile on his face as he looked agape, eyes widened as he stared from Wonwoo to Mingyu.

Hearing them talk about his hickeys, Wonwoo instantly gave Mingyu an "I told you" glare. He lowered his neck a bit, but there was no saving for him, since he was wearing a tank top. Meanwhile, the other simply pointed at the red marks on his pale skin, giggling at how cute Wonwoo looked when he was embarrassed.

"Oh my god!" A lot of them exclaimed and laughed, which only made Mingyu giggle more at how they were making such a big deal out of this.

"Alright, pay up, guys." Jeonghan and Seungkwan put out their palms waiting for Soonyoung, Hansol and Seungcheol, who picked up some cash from his pockets and gave it to them with a sigh.

"Wait, you bet on us?!" Wonwoo raised his eyebrows. Mingyu was more amused than surprised by all of this. The fact that they sensed something was going on between him and Wonwoo was hilarious to him.

"Of course." Jeonghan explained to him. "Right after that evening when we all met at the beach before Shua went out for his honeymoon, I noticed that weird sexual tension between you two and just knew there was something there." 

"Also, the whole childhood best friends to lovers concept sits right with me." Seungkwan added, tapping his finger on his chin, like he was analyzing Mingyu and Wonwoo. "You two know too much about each other and are too intimate to not want to bang."

"Oh my god..." Mingyu chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief of the things he was hearing. Even he was a little embarrassed with how they paid this much attention to him and Wonwoo all this time.

"I created a group with everyone else but you two, but obviously there was a group of cowards who didn't want to bet on it." Jeonghan continued, eyeing Joshua, Seokmin and Chan.

"I always knew you two had great chemistry together, ever since we were kids, so I didn't want to bet on anything. Just wait and see." Joshua told the two of them.

"Fuck, I think I have a headache." Wonwoo pinched the bridge of his nose and Mingyu giggled, giving a reassuring squeeze on his thigh while whispering a 'It's okay' close to his face.

"My god, I can't believe Mingyu had to come all the way from Seoul for Wonwoo to get laid." Seokmin commented and Wonwoo instantly glared at him.

"Seokmin, I'm actually going to kill you."

"Okay, but I have a question." Soonyoung raised his arm politely like he was in a class, seeming legitimately intrigued. "Who tops and who bottoms?"

"Alright! I think that's enough for today, huh?" Hansol saved them, seeing how desperate Wonwoo looked.

They decided to turn up the music and head to the pool while a few of them, those who didn't cook, did the dishes. All of them kept talking about how Wonwoo and Mingyu were a thing now, though, and the two of them couldn't help but hear it even from where they were.

Mingyu stretched a bit and got something to drink while he sunbathed for a little while. He took his phone from his pocket and changed the playlist that was playing to a more summer-y one, enjoying having all of his friends in his house on that nice summer day. 

Looking up, though, he noticed Jihoon and Soonyoung leaning on the wall on the other side of the backyard, drinks in hand and both standing very close to each other. Look, Mingyu wouldn't call himself an expert, but he knew exactly what flirting looked like and that was definitely it. Maybe he should've told Jihoon who was gay, who was bi and who was straight as soon as he arrived, but, even though Soonyoung identified himself as straight, he definitely semed like he was enjoying whatever it was that Jihoon was saying to him. Both of them had soft smiles on their faces and Jihoon wouldn't stop staring at Soonyoung's lips, so Mingyu thought it would be best to avert his eyes and give them some privacy. 

He finished his bottle of beer, took his shirt off and jumped into the pool, splashing water everywhere. Mingyu did a few laps around it and whipped his hair back when he was done swimming, taking a few steps inside the water towards Wonwoo, who was sitting on the edge of the pool spreading some sunscreen on his arms after taking off his shirt. The sky was clear that day and he could feel himself toasting under that hot sun, but thankfully Mingyu had a pool, so it cooled him down a bit.

"Hey, are you okay?" Mingyu approached him, placing his hands on Wonwoo's knees. Standing inside the pool, his head was able to reach just below Wonwoo's chest, so he had to lift his head up and scrunch his eyes to look at him, since he had no sunglasses on.

"Yeah." Wonwoo put his sunscreen aside and took a few wet hair strands from Mingyu's eyes.

"Not worried that they know about us or anything?"

"No, they're just really over the top and love to embarrass me, but… Nothing that I'm not used to." He shrugged, giving a reassuring smile to Mingyu.

"Great. Then, I can do this." Mingyu placed both of his hands on Wonwoo's sides and pulled himself up so he could reach his lips. Wonwoo couldn't help but smile a little into the kiss, kissing him back until Mingyu could no longer support himself.

"In front of everyone, huh?" Wonwoo chuckled at him, his ears red.

"Well, I really want to kiss you, what else can I do? Let's just let them be." Mingyu shrugged, giving his thighs a little squeeze. "Now, will you please come down here and chill in the pool with me?"

Wonwoo smiled and, as soon as he jumped in the water, he felt Mingyu's arms grab onto him and corner him against the tiles of the pool, one of his hands on his waist while the other went to the back of his neck. 

Mingyu gave him a slow, but passionate kiss that felt so good that Wonwoo forgot where he was, pulling him closer and placing one hand on Mingyu's face, caressing his cheek with his thumb. The other gave him a small bite on his bottom lip before licking into his mouth, his tongue swirling around Wonwoo's.

They were both quickly reminded of where they were though, because the boys started to cheer and whistle at them as soon as they spotted the two of them making out.

"Yeah! You go, boys!" Jeonghan hyped them up.

"Show him how we do it here in Sokdong, Wonwoo!" Soonyoung yelled, joined by Seungkwan's whistling.

"Do you guys need anything? Some snacks? A condom?" Seokmin quoted Mean Girls and Mingyu really wanted to continue kissing Wonwoo, but he laughed into the kiss and had to lean his head against Wonwoo's shoulder while he cackled loudly.

The other chuckled along with him and held him in his embrace, his hands caressing Mingyu's back under the water. Mingyu put his arms around Wonwoo's neck and began lazily kissing him all over his face and lips while Ordinary by UMI played on the speaker.

"Really wish it hadn't rained last night so we could've done it at the pool." Mingyu leaned in and whispered against Wonwoo's ear, biting lightly onto his earlobe.

"Well, I don't have a pool, but we could do it in my bathtub next time." Wonwoo joked and Mingyu chuckled lightly, giving him a small peck on the lips.

"I'll take it."

"What? You're leaving already?" They heard Seokmin ask someone loudly and turned around to see what was going on. "You can't! There's still dessert!"

"Yeah, I, uhm… I'm not feeling really well, so I think it's best if I leave." Hansol told him and the others, scratching the back of his head.

"Okay, that's enough bullshit." Chan, who had been talking to Hansol on the table before the other decided to leave, interrupted them, seeming pretty annoyed. "Hansol, will you please just talk to Seungkwan already and not simply decide to leave because you can't be in the same room as him?"

"What?" Seungkwan, who was talking to Jeonghan by the sink, stopped washing the dishes to stare back at them.

"Dammit, Chan, it's not… That easy." Hansol rubbed his hands on his face, seeming quite troubled and embarrassed to be ambushed like this in front of everyone.

Minghao had a shook expression on his face by the sudden change of mood and gave Mingyu a look all the way from where he was standing with Jun. This seemed like a few of the infamous dramas they'd witness at a party full of models back in Seoul.

"It is if you just cut the crap and talk to each other!" Chan argued. He sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Look, I'm really sorry to be saying this in front of the guys, but they're all your friends too and I've been telling you this all this time but you won't listen to me, so I thought you would at least listen to them."

Hansol stopped hiding his face in his hands, but still kept looking down, thinking of what to do.

"Chan's right, guys." Seungcheol told both Seungkwan and Hansol, deciding to speak out about it too. "It's not our right to meddle, but it pains us to see you two like this, so I think it'd be better if you two tried to talk it out." 

There was a moment of silence, before Seungkwan stepped up, his face looking like he was trying hard to keep his tears in.

"I… I would like to talk. You know I would." He spoke directly to Hansol, trying to look for his eyes. The other lifted up his head and let out a big sigh, giving him a small nod.

The two of them, then, made their way to Mingyu's living room, where they could get some privacy.

"Okay, everyone, show's over. Back to what you were doing." Jeonghan clapped to call their attention and turned up the volume of the music.

Jihoon approached Mingyu and handed both him and Wonwoo a bottle of beer each, before sitting down on the edge of the pool.

"Minghao wanted me to tell you to later spill for him whatever it is that's happening with those two." Jihoon told Mingyu and the other laughed. Of course Minghao would be interested in the gossip. He liked to play this cool and chill appearance on the outside, but he was also very observant and into any type of gossip. "But that's not what I came here to talk to you, though."

"Hm." Mingyu motioned for him to go on, holding his beer in one hand and his other arm lazily resting on Wonwoo's shoulders.

"Well, I got some exciting news for you from the outside world of Sokdong, my friend." Jihoon told him, a smile threatening to appear on his lips. "Gucci wants you to be a part of a campaign in Seoul."

"Say what now?!" Mingyu widened his eyes, almost spilling his beer with how startled he was. "Gucci wants me?!"

"Yup. And there's more." Jihoon now smiled from ear to ear, really happy to be delivering these news. "Burberry asked for you to catwalk at their autumn fashion show in Bangkok."

"Hold the front door. Gucci and Burberry? Seriously?" Mingyu had to put his beer down and put his hand over his mouth, shook. "This is wild. I-I can't believe this."

"You best believe it, my dude, because I already emailed you the paperwork for you to check it out. If you're in, you'll be starting in two weeks." Jihoon told him. "I told you those last photoshoots you did before coming here would be a big hit. A lot of brands got their eyes on you now, so expect more sponsors coming."

"Oh my God, this is huge." Mingyu giggled, still not believing any of this was real. He'd gotten to represent a few brands he admired before, but never such big brands like these two, known worldwide. And to think that they found him through his work and actually saw potential in him was something unbelievable. Mingyu felt like he was on cloud nine. He'd forgotten how exciting his job was sometimes and he'd definitely missed this jittery feeling of something new happening in his career. Taking this break really was the right thing for him to do.

"See? I told you you're special. You deserve it." Wonwoo gave him a squeeze on his waist and a kiss on his shoulder, his lips quirked up. Mingyu gave him a big smile and a peck on the lips.

"I feel so well rested here that I'm almost missing the busy schedules..." Mingyu chuckled, then turned to Jihoon for more business talk. "Now, tell me, did anyone else contact you? Do you have more details on the Gucci campaign?"

Wonwoo decided to move back and leave them be, since he didn't feel much like a part of that conversation. Instead, he floated in the water, looking at the clear sky above him, the sound of music and chatter muffled in the background. In his head, unlike his floating body, there was a dense turmoil of thoughts.

Outside, Wonwoo seemed pretty happy for Mingyu. And he really was, he was really proud to see him going up in his career like that, fulfilling all of his goals and dreams. However, that entire conversation brought up something Wonwoo had been trying to avoid for the past couple of days: Mingyu was leaving in two weeks.

He had tried really hard to hide that deep back in his mind while he enjoyed their little happy bubble, with cute dates and sexy moments. That was a terrible idea, though, because now Wonwoo caught himself even more infatuated than ever. He was head over heels with this man. It was ridiculous how much Mingyu made him giddy inside, aching to be near him at every damn hour of the day, feeling empty whenever he wasn't. Wonwoo no longer had a crush, like he used to back when he was a teenager. He was freaking in love with Kim Mingyu.

But now, he was leaving and they had absolutely no idea what the hell would happen to them in the future and how they would be able to work things out. Everything was so unclear and painful that Wonwoo thought that maybe he shouldn't have agreed to jump into this without talking over things first and setting some boundaries. Or maybe he shouldn't even have started this whole thing between the two of them in the first place. Maybe that would've been for the best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! We're nearing the end of the fic. I'm still working on it, but I think we'll probably have around 2 or 3 more chapters. Me and my friend Ju work together in this project, that's why it's taken us a while to update, since we've both been busy with college and work, hope you guys can forgive us. I promise we'll never abandon this fic, though, since it's such an important thing for us.  
> So, did you guys like the chapter? Some angst is coming our way!  
> If you liked it, please leave me some kudos and comments! Thank you all for reading <3


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi everyone!!! here i am with a new chapter, leading us to the end of our fic. even though this chapter isn't as long as the other ones, me and my friend (and beta-reader) Ju went through the dialogue a lot of times because this is a very important chapter in minwon's relationship, so we wanted to do them justice. we hope you like it and please let us know what you think! <3

Mingyu had just returned from the train station after dropping Jihoon, Minghao and Jun off and saying their goodbyes. He was thrown on his living room couch, going through the funny pictures of their huge group of friends at the barbecue the day before. He was for sure gonna miss those boys when he got back to Seoul. But, one most of all.

Suddenly, a message from Jihoon popped on the screen. He should still be on his trip back to Seoul, so it surprised Mingyu.

[Jihoon, 8:23 am]  
i'm really proud of you mingyu  
seeing how happy and carefree you looked  
it made me realize we did the right thing  
and i'm sure you'll be back from this stronger than ever  
just wanted to say that

Jihoon wasn't one to get emotional and say sappy things, that was even something Mingyu constantly teased him about, so it really surprised him to receive these texts from his friend. He was really grateful for Jihoon.

[Mingyu, 8:25 am]  
waaa <3  
i really am happy ʕ￫ᴥ￩ʔ  
thank you for insisting that i should take this break  
it really worked  
love you, hyung ヽ(*・ω・)ﾉ

[Jihoon, 8:30 am]  
stop with these emojis my god

Mingyu laughed out loud, already expecting that response.

"Hey Mingyu." His dad called him from the kitchen island, where he was checking on some papers from the grocery store.

Mingyu raised his head from the couch to show he was listening.

"I was thinking we could go out for lunch today, the whole family." His dad took off his reading glasses to look back at Mingyu. "Before, you know, before you leave. We should enjoy the time we've got."

A lump formed in Mingyu's throat, thinking about saying goodbye to his family, that he got so close with in the past few weeks, and not knowing when they would be seeing each other again, since Mingyu would probably be busy once he got back.

"I'd like that." 

"We could go to the diner near the city hall." His dad suggested.

"Actually..." Mingyu had thought of something else, with other intentions in the back of his head. "How about we go to the Jeon's restaurant? I don't know, I kind of like their food more." It wasn't actually the food he was interested in.

"Oh sure, maybe Taesuk's there and we can chat a bit. There's some things we need to discuss anyway." He shrugged, accepting it, and didn't even realize Mingyu's huge smile.

Mingyu had Hayoung in his arms when they got to the restaurant, his eyes looking around as a waiter took them to a table next to the window.

"Do you like it here, Mingyu?" Minjun asked, but he was distracted, looking, realizing a few seconds late that the question was for him.

"Uh, yeah, anywhere is fine." 

He caught a sight of him before sitting down and, as soon as Mingyu found him walking back from the kitchen, Wonwoo found him as well.

Mingyu smiled, seeing Wonwoo's expression turn from boredom to surprise from seeing him there. He, then, looked down at his little sister, adjusting her in her high chair, pretending he didn't see Wonwoo approaching their table.

"Oh, hey guys." Mingyu instantly smiled by hearing his voice, and looked up to give Wonwoo a big grin, seeing him look away, shy. Even with his black and white uniform, Wonwoo looked as handsome as ever. Mingyu was obsessed with how his hair was quite long, a few strands of his fringe falling over his thin round glasses.

"Hi Wonwoo! It's so good to see you!" Minjun greeted him, sweet as always. Hayoung also greeted him excitedly, remembering the big bunny Wonwoo had given her at the fair.

"Is your dad around, Wonwoo?" Sangwoo asked. "I need to chat with him about some boring bureaucracy." Since the Kim's grocery store provided a lot of ingredients for the Jeon's restaurant, Mingyu's and Wonwoo's dad had become very close over the years.

"He isn't, actually. He's focused on making a few changes to our menu, lately, so he's been at home a lot, trying to perfect some new dishes." He explained to Mingyu's dad. "But, I've been dealing with a lot of the restaurant's papers and accounting. If you want, you can talk to me."

Okay, that was hot, Mingyu though.

"Oh, great! We can talk later, then. It's great to see how responsible and grown up you've become, Wonwoo." Sangwoo complimented him and Wonwoo thanked him. He, then, went out to get the family's drinks and was back to get their order.

"Hm, all of these look so good..." Minjun went through the menu.

"Why can't Wonwoo oppa sit with us?" Hayoung asked all of a sudden, pouting and shaking her legs in boredom. 

"Oh, I can't, I'm sorry." Wonwoo apologized to her in a soft voice. "I need to get back to work and also… You're in a family lunch, I wouldn't want to..."

"But you're my brother's boyfriend! So, you're family, right?" Hayoung argued and there was a sudden silence around the table, apart from the sound of Mingyu choking in his own drink.

"Uh..." Wonwoo was speechless, his ears and neck burning red.

"Hayoung!" Mingyu reprimanded her as soon as he got himself together, his voice still hoarse. He looked at Minjun and his dad and they both looked like they didn't know what to say.

"Wait, so you two are dating?" Sangwoo asked once he got over the initial surprise and Minjun kicked him under the table, giving him a warning look. "What?! I just want to know!" He defended himself. "I have no problem at all with it, in fact I remember the two of them being really close when they were young, maybe we should've seen it coming." 

"Dad..." Mingyu asked him to stop, seeing Wonwoo was almost dying from embarrassment.

"I-I think I should go." He excused himself and Mingyu quickly stood up to go after him.

"Hey, hey." He got a hold of Wonwoo next to the kitchen, putting down his notepad on a table and organizing cutlery to ease his mind. Mingyu put his hand on Wonwoo's arm to make him turn around to look at him. A small frown between Wonwoo's eyebrows showed him he was worried. "I'm really sorry about that, Hayoung wasn't supposed to say it like that, I told her in secret..." He tried to explain it. "But I swear my dad and my stepmother are completely fine with… Well, me being gay. They're very supportive." 

"I know, Gyu, I just..." Wonwoo leaned back against the table, frowning as he tried to gather his thoughts on what was really bothering him. "Well, now your parents know, and your dad is probably going to talk about it with my dad, which is fine, but then… Then, the story will go around and next thing you know the talk of the town will be the Kim's and the Jeon's kids dating. And it just… It takes this from us, you know? This relationship." When it's not even gonna be ours for long, Wonwoo wanted to add.

"No one's gonna take anything from us. We'll be fine." Mingyu took Wonwoo's hand in his, slowly caressing his knuckles with his thumbs and giving him a comforting half smile. They were in a corner of the restaurant where the customers couldn't see them. And, to not make Wonwoo more embarrassed, Mingyu made sure no employee was passing by when he leaned in and took Wonwoo's lips in his in a soft kiss. Wonwoo kissed him back and nodded.

"We'll be fine." He repeated Mingyu's words, even though he didn't know if he actually believed them.

"I'll go back to them now, alright?" Mingyu's fingers continued to caress Wonwoo's the whole time. He nodded and the other gave him a last peck on the lips before backing away.

"Oh Mingyu, is Wonwoo upset?" Minjun asked him, worried, as soon as Mingyu went back to the table. "Please, tell him we don't judge you or anything, me and your father were just surprised and..."

"It's okay, Minjun, he's fine. He was just… Overwhelmed." Mingyu explained it to her, trying to ease her mind. 

"I'm sorry..." Hayoung apologized, looking down with her trembling lips, about to cry.

"It's okay, pumpkin. I'm not mad at you, alright?" Mingyu gave her a squeeze on the shoulders, trying to comfort her. "It actually wasn't a secret, we just… Kept it to ourselves." He shrugged, thinking about how his and Wonwoo's happy bubble felt safe and comforting.

"But when did it start? If you don't mind me asking." Mingyu's dad said, after getting another glance from his wife. "I mean, was it when you were kids? Because we didn't realize..." Mingyu felt through his dad's unspoken words that he felt upset by not picking up these kinds of details or seeing who his son really was from early on, like that meant he was a bad father, which he absolutely wasn't. Sangwoo had always been a very busy man and he and Mingyu didn't talk much about feelings, but he knew his dad loved him and supported him by his small actions. Just the fact that he didn't force Mingyu to work in the grocery store, like his dad and his grandad had done, already made him appreciate his father a lot.

"No, back then we were only best friends." Mingyu tried to clear it up, feeling his dad's eyes on him. "I mean, we both eventually developed crushes on each other, but we didn't know about it until I came back here and we saw each other again." Mingyu was playing with the straw on his cup while he explained it, but when he looked up, he saw Wonwoo serving a few customers. Their eyes met a couple of times and Mingyu couldn't help the small smile that appeared on his lips. "Then we… Started to get to know each other again and… Well, things happened." He thought it would be best to leave it at that.

"Wonwoo is a great kid, I've always liked him." Sangwoo commented, like he approved of it. "And this also means an even more concrete alliance between our businesses, definitely a positive thing." 

"Dad, we're not getting married..." Mingyu blushed, even though talking about it made him giggly. Mingyu had always been really sappy. "But, yeah, I like him too. A lot."

☼

Mingyu was helping his dad with a few boxes at the grocery store one hot summer afternoon when he got a text from Wonwoo.

[Wonwoo, 3:30 pm]  
Hey  
I've already finished with some papers here at the restaurant, so now I'm free  
Do you want to meet at the beach?

[Mingyu, 3:31 pm]  
yesss!!!  
i'm dying from this heat (∩︵∩)

[Wonwoo, 3:33 pm]  
Alright  
I'll quickly go home and change  
Meet me there in 20 minutes?

[Mingyu, 3:34 pm]  
(/^▽^)/

"Hey, dad." After finishing his task, Mingyu caught a hold of his dad as he was checking a list of the few boxes that had arrived. "Are you good there? Wonwoo asked if I wanted to meet him at the beach..."

Sangwoo looked up from the paper he was holding to his son's puppy eyes.

"Sure, you go. I'll ask the guys to handle these last ones." Sangwoo pointed at the boxes in front of him. "You've already helped enough today, son, thank you. Now go spend time with your, uh, boyfriend." 

Mingyu cringed at his words. It was awkward having his dad try hard to support him in his love life, but Mingyu appreciated the effort.

"He's not..." He was about to explain, but realized that would be too hard, since he didn't even know what he and Wonwoo actually were. "Alright. Thanks."

Mingyu was already wearing a red tank top, some shorts and sandals, so he didn't need to change before going to the beach.

When he got there, Mingyu looked around the beach, seeing only a few groups of people hanging out or playing in the water. He soon spotted Wonwoo by the right corner, next to the rocks. He was distracted, sitting on a beach towel, while filming the area.

"Got some good shots?" Mingyu approached him, smiling at how adorable Wonwoo was when he looked up at him, startled.

"Uh, yeah, it's a really beautiful afternoon." He told him, putting down his camera and scooting in the beach towel for Mingyu to sit beside him.

"I already told you you should start a vlog channel." Mingyu said, sitting with his knees up, his arms resting on them as he faced Wonwoo. "Hi."

"Hi." Wonwoo smiled softly back at him, their faces really close to each other, since the beach towel they were sharing wasn't very big. Wonwoo got shy after they stared at each other for too long and decided to look down at the towel they were sitting.

"Uh, I got these from my mom." He explained, motioning at the bag beside him with sunscreen and a bottle of water, as well. "She insisted I'd bring all of this for us."

Mingyu only nodded, still staring at Wonwoo with a small smile on his lips. God, he was so infatuated.

"Stop..." Wonwoo giggled, embarrassed, his ears getting red.

"Alright, I'll stop." Mingyu giggled as well, taking Wonwoo's hand in his, instead, and playing with his fingers.

"So, my dad knows." Wonwoo told him, getting a surprised look back from Mingyu. "Your dad told him yesterday." He realized Mingyu was opening his mouth to apologize and quickly interrupted him. "No need to worry. I think it's better this way. I wouldn't want to sit down with him and make a huge deal out of all of this." He explained. It was Wonwoo's first gay relationship and the coming-out-as-bisexual-talk he'd had with his parents a few years back was already awkward enough to handle.

"He's okay, then?" Mingyu asked. He remembered Wonwoo's dad being way stricter than his. Of course, he built his restaurant from the ground up, so obviously he had to be a serious and business-focused person. But, although he was strict like that, he had always been a great father to Wonwoo. Being his only son, Taesuk made sure to always provide Wonwoo with everything he needed. That was probably why Wonwoo thought he owed a lot to his dad and was so hesitant in leaving the restaurant's administration, feeling like he was betraying his father.

"He's better knowing it's you." Wonwoo chuckled a bit, drawing on the sand with his finger. "When I came out as bisexual to my parents, it took him a while to fully accept it, but he eventually did. He still doesn't understand what bisexual means, though, and he probably thought I was experimenting and would eventually get married with a girl, in the end. But, now, seeing me with a man for the first time, I think it finally hit him." Wonwoo explained. "But I think my mom hinted at him about the two of us after she caught us, uh, making out…" Wonwoo bit on his bottom lip, remembering that day where they made out at the restaurant's office. "Because she can't keep her mouth shut. So, he kind of knew it already."

Mingyu nodded and intertwined their fingers, waiting for Wonwoo to continue.

"Then, this morning he awkwardly came up to me while I was making breakfast and said 'So, you and Mingyu, huh?' and I said 'Yeah, me and Mingyu' and he just went 'Alright'." Wonwoo laughed out loud, remembering the scene, the delightful sound making Mingyu chuckle as well. "It's good, now he'll probably understand more about bisexuality. That I can like both."

"He will, I'm sure." Mingyu raised his hand to his lips and gave it a kiss on the back of it. Feeling the heat almost burning his shoulders and the sweat making his hair stick to his forehead, Mingyu shook his head to let his hair fall back. "God, it's really hot."

He took off his top and put it to the side with Wonwoo's bag.

"Come on, let's put on some sunscreen, otherwise you'll be all red tomorrow." Mingyu pulled up Wonwoo's shirt before the other could even protest and plastered a good amount of sunscreen in his hands, positioning himself behind Wonwoo so he could spread it onto his back.

"Are you only trying to get your hands on me?" Wonwoo questioned him as he looked back, arched eyebrows in a knowing look.

"Maybe I am." Mingyu whispered against his ear and gave him a peck on the cheek before continuing to slowly spread sunscreen on Wonwoo's fair skin. His hands massaged Wonwoo's shoulders, hearing him sigh in satisfaction, and then made their way to Wonwoo's chest, holding him from the back. His fingers brushed against Wonwoo's nipples, which made the other let out small gasps in surprise. 

"You're gonna give me a boner in public." Wonwoo murmured, holding Mingyu's hands in place so he'd stop moving.

"We can hide it in the water later." Mingyu giggled, giving a little bite on his earlobe, which gave Wonwoo shivers all over his spine.

"Alright, enough." He breathed out and separated himself from Mingyu, motioning for the sunscreen. "Your turn now."

Wonwoo was quick to spread sunscreen on Mingyu's toned body, not wanting to get too into it and find himself horny in the middle of a beach.

"I'll go in the water now, will you go with me?" Mingyu stood up once he was all set and stretched a bit, delighted in having Wonwoo's eyes on him.

"Uh, later. I still want to get a few shots with the camera and I can't do that with my hands all wet." Wonwoo told him.

Mingyu didn't insist and turned around to run to the sea. The water was refreshing enough to cool off the burning heat of that afternoon and he dived and swimmed around a bit, before returning to where Wonwoo was sitting.

He saw him filming in his direction and made sure to give him a show as he walked out of the sea, shaking his wet hair and then running his fingers through the strands, a little smirk on his lips. Mingyu knew he looked good, so he loved to tease about it.

Wonwoo only put down the camera when Mingyu approached him, but the other still stood there in front of him, smirking.

"Like what you see, huh?" He arched an eyebrow at Wonwoo, who gave him an eye roll. "Do you wanna get with this?" He motioned down to his body.

"I already got with it all night long, not sure if you remember." Wonwoo teased him back, making Mingyu laugh out loud. He, then, pulled him down by his arm and Mingyu dramatically fell down onto his back on top of the beach towel. Wonwoo leaned on his hand and looked down at Mingyu, admiring his beautiful bronzed skin, shining under the sunlight. His gaze went from Mingyu's face, getting a few wet strands away from his eyes, to his chest, rising up and down with his breathing, and finally to his defined abs. Wonwoo's index finger followed the wet trace of a water drop running down Mingyu's abs until it dropped to the side of his hips. The other's eyes followed his every move.

"I remember it clearly." He spoke in a low voice, looking up at Wonwoo. His face was hovering over Mingyu's, the shadow protecting his eyes from the sun. Wonwoo looked back to his face, his thumb lightly caressing Mingyu's bottom lip and Mingyu delighted in the way Wonwoo admired him, like he was caught in a trance.

Slowly, Wonwoo leaned down and caught Mingyu's lips in his, taking him in a languid kiss. His hand rested on the side of Mingyu's face, his thumb caressing the other's cheek while Wonwoo's tongue licked its way into Mingyu's mouth. Their kiss continued at a slow pace, both taking in the moment as their tongues danced around each other. They didn't kiss for long, but it felt so romantic that Mingyu felt like he was inside a scene of a movie.

"Didn't you say something about us being in public?" Mingyu questioned when their lips separated only enough to be brushing against each other.

Wonwoo didn't even bother to look up, his eyes still focused on Mingyu.

"There's barely anyone here." He shrugged, making the other giggle.

"Come on, get in the water with me." Mingyu gave him a kiss on the cheek, before standing up and taking Wonwoo's hands, pulling him along.

Wonwoo let himself get dragged into the water, shivering cold as soon as he got in, but quickly adjusting to it.

They played together, splashing water at each other and competing in who could swim the fastest. It was almost like they were back to the old days when the two of them would play together at the beach. The difference was that now they would exchange a few kisses and embraces here and there.

When they were leaving the water, Mingyu caught Wonwoo's attention to seashells all over the sand and convinced him to look for the prettiest ones with him.

The sun was setting when they rested on the beach towel in silence, Wonwoo filming and taking pictures while Mingyu laid there with an arm supporting the back of his head, watching him. It had been a while since Mingyu felt this happy and at ease. The Mingyu from two months ago, who thought he wouldn't be able to spend over a week in Sokdong, couldn't even imagine that he would be dreading the day he'd have to go back to Seoul.

He had never thought he would've felt so welcomed, made so many friends and had so much fun like he did in his hometown after leaving so many years ago. His friends, family, but, most of all, Wonwoo made him want to stay.

Mingyu wished he could just simply throw it all away and go somewhere with Wonwoo, just the two of them for god knows how long. But he had a life to get back to in Seoul and who knows what the future held for the two of them. That's what scared him the most.

Although his head repeated in a loop that he should enjoy the current situation, his heart tightened and seemed to feel the other way around. He regretted, more than once in the past, not appreciating or taking pleasure enough of the moment he was living. Not looking at the bright side even when his life turned upside down. When he spent way too much time worrying about what could’ve been only made him more miserable and unable to enjoy his life, so he reached a point in which he focused more on seizing the day – for he could never be sure about tomorrow.

So, he decided that it would be more fruitful to just shake his head and ignore the weight on his conscience.

He still had one week left to enjoy and forget about the fact that he would eventually have to leave it all behind.

☼

For the first few days on the next week Mingyu was barely able to see Wonwoo at all, let alone hang out with him. Wonwoo had taken over the responsibility to take care of an issue with a distributor for the restaurant that demanded a lot of bureaucracy and paperwork, so he had been extra busy, only talking to Mingyu through the phone.

Mingyu decided to spend those days with the rest of the boys, seeing he was leaving soon, rather it be playing volleyball at the beach, hanging out at the Lee's coffee shop or at Cheol's bar.

He was missing Wonwoo, though, and was afraid they wouldn't get to spend enough time together before he had to leave, so Mingyu came up with an idea to surprise Wonwoo after work one day, take his mind off things.

Wonwoo had told him through text that he was probably leaving the restaurant at around 8 pm that evening, so Mingyu made sure to be there and greet him at the door right as he was leaving.

"Mingyu?" Wonwoo raised his eyebrows, not expecting to see him there.

"Professional mood lifter at your service, sir!" Mingyu shouted and did a salute movement.

It worked, since a smile instantly appeared in Wonwoo's face, getting the weight of the work day from his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, what?" Wonwoo asked, laughing, his eyes filled with fondness.

"Well, you told me that things have been hectic for you lately, so..." Mingyu approached, taking Wonwoo's hands in his and caressing his knuckles. "I'm here to relieve that stress for a bit. I'm taking you to our lookout and we'll hang out for a couple of hours. I even brought snacks!"

Wonwoo sighed, nodding in agreement. He was really tired, but seeing Mingyu indeed raised his spirits.

The couple walked for about ten minutes before they got at the lookout, the waning moon shining bright above the ocean. The sound of the strong tides at night filled the air.

"I'm sorry I barely had any time to see you for the last couple of days, it's been crazy at the restaurant lately..." Wonwoo breathed out when he sat at a rock, taking a handful of chips Mingyu was offering him.

"It's totally okay, you have a lot of responsibilities on you."

"This supplier of ours had agreed to something and then he wanted to take it back, but it was designated on the contract, so we had to contact our lawyer… God, I think I've had a headache for three days straight." Wonwoo rambled, pinching the bridge of his nose and taking a deep breath. Mingyu let him vent and raised his hand to massage him at the shoulders for a bit. That made the other stay in silence for a while, looking at the dark sea, the waves hitting the rocks under them. "I mean, it's at times like this when I realize why I can't let them alone with the restaurant, you know? They need me too much." 

Mingyu frowned a bit, stating his opinion.

"Well, but how do you think they were able to handle things before you started working there?" He told him. "They built this entire restaurant from the ground up by themselves. I mean, of course you help them a lot and they've gotten used to you being there for them by now, but I'm sure they could do it on their own."

Wonwoo bit on his bottom lip, thinking. That subject had always been a big dilemma inside his head.

"I know, but they're getting old now and after my dad's injury..." He sighed. "Well, mom divides the managing work with me, but she has a lot on her plate dealing with HR stuff and customer service. I do most of the finance deals and accounting work, and, to be fair, dad even helps us out sometimes... But we still worry a lot about him. He sometimes scares us with his sporadic pains so we avoid giving him too many responsibilities." He paused, head busy with thought, forehead wrinkled in preoccupation. "It's just difficult, you know? I can't just leave them with these heavy duties. And they’re not getting any younger.”

"So, you'll just let it be?" Mingyu frowned deeper, looking at Wonwoo. "I mean, answer me this. Are you happy? Are you satisfied?"

There was a cold breeze brushing against their faces before Wonwoo took a deep breath, after a long silence, and replied to Mingyu.

“I guess. I don’t know. My life is okay, I like my friends and my family and I have a pretty comfortable life, a roof above my head so–”

“But are you happy where you are right now?”

This time, the pause didn’t take as long as the previous one.

“I’m not sure. Maybe there’s this feeling that I could do more but I think everyone feels that, right? I’m not special.”

"Babe, don’t undersell yourself, your individuality. You're young and you've got your own dreams and plans to pursue. This is completely valid."

"Plans?" Wonwoo looked at him, giving a dry chuckle. "I don't have any plans."

"Yes, but you can make them!" Mingyu sat up straight, getting hyped about that subject. Wonwoo was very talented and he'd hate to see it thrown away. "You should do the things you love, Wonwoo. Did you take a look at the film schools programs I sent you?"

"I… I did, yeah." Wonwoo looked down to his lap. Mingyu was so eager for him to try and make his dreams come true, get out of Sokdong and live a better life… Like he did. But not everyone had the same luck as Mingyu. What if he tried it and it didn't work out? Then, he'd have abandoned his parents for nothing?

Talking about this ended up stressing Wonwoo out a bit, since he had no idea what to do with his life. He felt like he didn’t even have the time to think about what he desired for himself. When he did entertain the thought, however, it felt quite foreign. He feared being ungrateful for what he had.

"And? Did you like them? I think they're very nice and there's many options for you to choose from."

"They're all in Seoul, aren't they?" Wonwoo looked back at him.

"Well, yeah, those are the best film schools in the country!" Mingyu pointed like it was obvious. "And I'm sure you'd get in any one you choose, you're really talented." 

“It’s not that easy–” Wonwoo mumbled in a low voice, before Mingyu countered enthusiastically.

"But it’s not also that hard. You could live with me and Jihoon, so you won't have to worry about those costs, since Seoul is expensive and..." He continued, trying to convince Wonwoo. 

"Mingyu, stop." Wonwoo ran his hand through his face, more stressed out than before. “It wouldn’t be fair to you or to Jihoon, mind you that I barely know him, to just get in the way of your lives. My savings wouldn’t last half a year in the big city.”

“You could find a part-time job and balance it with college. Or try scholarships.”

“It’s not only that, Mingyu. I can't do that to my parents, they need me too much over here and I'm their only son… They've done a lot for me and now it's time I give it back to them."

“Babe, listen to yourself. Don’t you see that you are constantly finding excuses to avoid thinking about your own goals? I know you deserve more than that.” Mingyu reached out to adjust a strand of hair from Wonwoo’s eyes, but Wonwoo shook his head in disbelief before answering him, unintentionally avoiding the touch.

“Oh, don’t act like you know what's best for me, Mingyu.” He said in a disheartened tone, growing tired of the route of the conversation.

“So, you'd be okay throwing your life away because of them?" Mingyu argued, not getting why Wonwoo was so defensive about this. Those were his own dreams, after all, he couldn't stop living because of his parents, forever trapped in this small town. Especially if he wasn’t content with his situation.

"My life?!" Wonwoo raised his voice a bit, annoyed already about that stupid argument. Mingyu should just step back and let Wonwoo decide this by himself, he couldn’t help but think. "My life is right here, Mingyu, my house, my family, all I've ever known." 

"Well, I'm not!"

There was a moment of silence where they just looked at each other, the sound of the ocean waves on the beach below them while Mingyu's words were sinking in. He knew he was probably wrong about putting himself in Wonwoo's narrative, but he couldn't help it. At least, it felt like it was true. If Wonwoo went to Seoul, things would be a lot easier for them.

"So, that's why you're so adamant about this? That's why you want me to go to Seoul so damn much? Because of us?" Wonwoo looked at him, incredulous in Mingyu's selfishness.

"No, of course not! I'm thinking about what's best for you and your future!" Mingyu gesticulated with his hands, trying to prove his point, but Wonwoo wouldn't have it.

“This worry seems rich coming from you, really.” Mingyu opened his mouth to say something, but Wonwoo kept going, raising his voice a little. “Are you really thinking about what’s best for me and my future? Or are you just trying to fill a gap in your life and put yourself first, before anyone else? Because what I just heard is that apparently you should be the only thing that matters in my life, above anything else!”

“No, no, I genuinely want what’s best for you!” He grasped onto Wonwoo's arm and looked at him with his eyebrows raised, exasperated for Wonwoo to believe in him. “Yeah, I expressed myself badly but what can I do? I really like being with you and these were the best days of my life. Is it so bad to want it to keep going? Don’t you like us together?”

“It’s not about not liking us together, Gyu. We’re having a relationship in a very unusual scenario. A nice little fantasy that will be over in a couple of days. I have my life in Sokdong and you have your life in Seoul. I wondered so many times whether we– I don’t know.”

“Should we just talk about this tomorrow? You’re pretty fatigued and this won’t get us anywhere–” Mingyu pleaded, tired as well, running his hand through his hair. Seeing Wonwoo simply sigh in return, he realized they might've come to a place of no resolution and it annoyed him that Wonwoo didn't even think of the alternative of fighting for them. "Well, you clearly didn't even consider coming to Seoul with me, didn't you?"

"God, I can't believe this, not this again..." Wonwoo sighed and shook his head in disappointment, glancing at the sea.

"Alright, then what if I am thinking about us as well? Will you blame me?" Mingyu raised his voice, stressed about how bad that conversation was going. "Weren't you the one who wanted to talk about what was going to be of our relationship, anyway? Then, let's do that! Let's talk about it!"

"What is there to talk about? At this point?" Wonwoo looked back at him, his face expressionless, since he knew where this was going.

"Well, what will we do, then? If you're not going to be in Seoul with me, then are you willing to try a long distance relationship?" He asked him, seriously.

"Long distance…" Wonwoo sighed, thinking about how that could possibly work out. He'd heard Chan's experience on that.

"I don't think it's such a bad thing for us to try." Mingyu spoke in a lower voice this time, trying to convince Wonwoo. "I mean, after this trip, I reconnected with my family and made new friends, so of course I'll be back to Sokdong more often."

"And when will that be, since you're so busy back in Seoul? Now more than ever, with all of those new opportunities." Wonwoo questioned, sounding pettier than he would’ve liked.

"Well, it might not be once a month, but of course I'll be back."

"That's what you said before, years ago." Wonwoo whispered, but Mingyu was able to catch it. He couldn't respond, though, staying in silence for a while. Wonwoo was still blaming him for leaving him when he was a teenager.

"It's different this time. Much different." They were different.

“Is it though?” Wonwoo asked in a darker tone, not quite sure where he was going, looking straight into the dark sky ahead of them, above the sea. “You know what I think, Mingyu? I think that we are very different people. You and me. Sometimes it feels like I'm talking to the same Mingyu from ten years ago. That kid who really believed the world revolved around him.” Wonwoo turned to look into Mingyu’s eyes, a bit watery but he wasn’t sure if it was due to the intensifying wind currents and the salty air or something else. “Surely this isn’t a bad thing, Mingyu, no. It has brought you to incredible places and allowed you to live this wonderful life that you live. But it is so tiring sometimes, to me, because the way you live is so fast paced that it feels... unreachable. It feels… intangible.”

Mingyu briefly shook his head, scratching his eyes and then hugging his own arms, not knowing exactly what was happening nor digesting Wonwoo’s words properly.

“I want to make it tangible for us, though.” Mingyu took a deep breath and spoke after a few seconds thinking, taking Wonwoo's hand in his for the first time in that awful conversation of theirs. "I know we won't be able to… Hug, kiss or touch each other..." He lowered his arms and leaned closer to Wonwoo, daring to tighten his grip on Wonwoo's hand as he said it. The other looked down at their hands and Mingyu noticed a pained expression on his face. "But, we can talk everyday on the phone and arrange some dates through facetime or something..." Mingyu let out a small laugh, trying to ease the mood. "We can do it, Woo. We can adapt, huh?"

They stayed in silence for some time while Wonwoo thought about it, playing with Mingyu's fingers. When he finally spoke, though, he shattered Mingyu's heart in pieces.

"I… I don't think it'll work out, Gyu."

"W-What? Wonwoo, that's our only option, what do you want us to do, then?" He looked up to Wonwoo's eyes, a deep frown on his forehead and a lump forming in his throat. Mingyu asked him that with a tiny side of him already knowing what was going to be Wonwoo's answer.

The other looked down as one hand played with the hem of his shirt nervously, staying silent for a few excruciating seconds. It was when Wonwoo's other hand let go of Mingyu's that he knew what was coming.

"I think it's better if we break up already."

Mingyu's hand fell down limp in between them while he looked up at Wonwoo with pain in his eyes. The other looked away, back at the sea, his own heart constricting in his chest.

"That's what you want, then?" Mingyu asked with a hoarse voice.

"It's what I think will be better." He spoke in a low voice. "We're clearly living in very opposite mindsets."

Mingyu nodded slowly, quickly drying the single tear that dared to fall from his right eye. Wonwoo looked at him for a second, but then glanced back at the sea, his hands tightening on the hem of his shirt.

"Alright." 

Mingyu stood up, took a final look at the moon and the dark sea and walked back home, alone.

Once he was nearing the corner of his street, a thought occurred to him and he took his phone, looking for a specific contact number.

"Hey, Jihoon?" His voice sounded awful and lower than usual, trying to speak through that big lump in his throat, but thankfully his friend didn't take up on it. "Talk to me about those brand deals. When can I start?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so??? don't worry, there's still a lot of things to happen nearing the end and i'm reaally excited to show you what we have planned for minwon! hope you guys stay with us 'til the end of this ride :)


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